A Mission For Harper
by Benesound
Summary: Dylan chooses Harper for a dangerous Top Secret mission.
1. Chapter 1

**_A MISSION FOR HARPER_**

Harper was in Machine shop five getting ready for a parts run with Rhade and Becca. Andromeda appeared in holographic form, near the workbench..

"Harper." Andromeda said. "Dylan would like to see you in his office."

"Great!" Harper replied. "What now? I haven't been working on any secret projects, so it can't be that. I haven't even been late at the last few crew meetings. All of your systems are working far above Commonwealth standards. Jeesh! I just wish everyone, especially Dylan would start treating me with some respect and have a little more faith in me."

"Relax Harper." Andromeda told him. "You're not in trouble. He just needs to talk to you about something."

"What about?"

"He didn't say."

"He didn't tell you? That's odd."

"He did receive a classified communication from High Guard Command, on Terazed." Andromeda said. "But when I asked him what it was about, he apologized and said he couldn't tell me. An hour later he told me that he wanted you to report to his office."

"You think they're going to make Dylan replace me?" Harper asked. "I'm not officially a High Guard officer. Maybe they want someone better qualified to be your engineer."

"Harper." Andromeda said. "I don't want this to go to your head, but there is nobody better qualified to be my engineer than you, especially after all the modifications and upgrades you've done. A High Guard engineer would be totally lost just trying to figure out my lights and doors."

"Thanks." Harper said.

"Your welcome. I really don't think that's what's going on anyhow Harper, but if they ever did try to replace you as my engineer, let me just say that they would have a fight on their hands."

"I wonder what this is all about then." Harper said.

"Instead of standing around here wondering about it, perhaps you should go to Dylan and ask him. Otherwise you'll make Rhade and Becca late."

"You're right again." Harper said, as he neared the door. "Thanks again,… uh for what you said. You'd really fight for me?"

"Yes Harper. I would." Andromeda said, and Harper left the Machine shop. "With every warhead at my disposal." She continued, after Harper had left. She then vanished from the Machine shop and reappeared in Becca's quarters.

"Becca." Andromeda said. "I wanted to inform you that Harper may be a little late. Dylan needed to talk to him about something."

"What's Shorty done now?" Becca asked.

"As far as I know Harper hasn't done anything wrong Becca. Dylan just wanted to see him before he left with you and Rhade."

"He's probably giving him a speech about being on his best behavior." Becca said. "Or maybe there's something else Dylan wants Harper to pick up."

"You're probably right Becca.." Andromeda said before vanishing from Becca's room. She decided that it was best not to mention Dylan's classified message from Terazed.

Dylan was in his office when he heard the door chime.

"It's me Boss." Harper said. "May I come in?"

Dylan opened the door and invited Harper inside.

"Andromeda." Dylan said. "Activate privacy mode please."

"Privacy mode engaged." Andromeda's voice answered.

"Boss?" Harper asked, confused at the way Dylan was acting. "What's going on?"

Dylan paced back and forth, in deep thought. How much could he tell Harper? Did he make the right choice choosing Harper for this mission? Finally he decided. If Harper accepted the mission, he would be risking his life, and deserved to at least know as much as Dylan.

Harper watched as Dylan walked back and forth across the floor of his office. He'd never seen Dylan this nervous before, not even before a battle. He wondered what could make his captain so uneasy.

Dylan finally stopped pacing and looked at Harper.

"Harper, what I'm about to tell you can't be repeated to another soul. Do you understand?"

"Uh, yea Boss." Harper replied. "I understand. Mums the word."

"Mum?" Dylan asked.

"Old Earth expression." Harper said. "I won't tell anyone."

"Very well." Dylan replied. "As I said, this is very top secret information and you and I are the only ones that will know about the mission."

"What mission." Harper asked.

"I'm getting to that. Harper as you know you'll soon be joining Rhade and Becca on the Maru to go down to the planet Maligna for supplies. Besides the normal supplies, I need you to go to the Synthori Laboratory and pick up a special package. Be very careful with it and bring it back to the Andromeda without anyone finding out about it."

"That's it?" Harper asked. "Pick up a package? Piece of cake Boss! Consider it done."

"Harper, it may not be as easy as I made it sound. There are other people that want this package, People that would kill for it. You'll have to be very careful and constantly watch your back. Arm yourself as if you were

going into a war zone."

"I see,…" Harper said. "Dylan, can I ask you one stupid question?"

"Go ahead."

"What's in the package?"

"To tell you the truth Harper I don't know." Dylan said. "All I can tell you is that the Synthori Laboratory works to develop new and better genetic enhancements and they also have been attempting to strengthen individuals immune systems. I can only assume that they have made some sort of major breakthrough."

"If that's the case," Harper said. "I can see why others might want to steal it."

"Harper when you get to the Lab, ask for Dr. Doodlewaddle."

"Dr. Doodlewaddle?" Harper asked, trying to keep from laughing.

"That's not his real name Harper." Dylan said. "They'll know that you've come for the package when you ask for him. They will then take you to meet your contact. Once you're alone with Doodlewaddle, tell him that you're the Super Genius come to pick up the Yo-Yo."

"Doodlewaddle, Super Genius, Yo-Yo. Got it!" Harper said. "I just have one more question Dylan."

"What's that Harper?"

"Why in the Tri-Galaxies did you choose me for this mission and not Rhade?"

Dylan sit down on the front of his desk and let out a loud sigh.

"Harper, You have been a member of this crew ever since the day you and Becca pulled the Andromeda out of that black hole. We've been through a lot together, and although most of the time I might neglect to tell you, I'm really proud of everything you do in order to keep Andromeda operating. In so doing, you kept my dream of a new Commonwealth alive as well. I also know that you're a survivor. The fact that you lived so long on Earth and was finally able to get off of that dreaded planet is proof of that.

I was also given some information concerning some rather shocking information about your past Harper. It seems that you used to do some, shall I say "cleanup" work, for an organization called…."

"Uh, ok Dylan that's enough. I'd rather not talk about that. It's not something I'm proud of."

"Very well." Dylan said. "As for why I didn't choose Rhade, I'm not really sure. I guess if I was to be totally honest with myself I would have to say that I don't yet trust him as much as I do you."

Harper was speechless, and for Harper that's really saying something. The thing that shocked him the most was that Dylan or somebody found out about his past activities with the unnamed organization. Not even Becca knew that he had secretly taken contracts from them. Harper cleared his head. That life is all past him now.

"Thanks Dylan." Harper finally said. "I won't let you down."

"I know you won't Harper." Dylan said. "I have faith in you."

"Dylan. Can I ask a huge favor?"

"You don't want me telling anyone about your past."

"It would really mean a lot to me Boss."

"Don't worry Harper." Dylan said. "Mom's the word."

"Uh, that's mum, … not mom."

"That's what I meant. Mum."

OO

Trance was sitting on the floor in her room when she saw a vision of the future. It was bad, very bad. She immediately jumped up and went running toward the docking bay where the Maru was located. She had to stop Harper before he left. She had to prevent her vision from coming to pass.

Trance arrived at the Docking bay just as the Maru was leaving. She saw Dylan standing at the door and ran up to him.

"Trance." Dylan said. "I'm surprised you weren't here earlier to see everyone off."

"Dylan ." Trance said. "Bring them back."

"Why Trance?" What's wrong?"

"Just bring them back!" She repeated. "Bring Harper back!"

"Trance tell me what's wrong. Did you see something? Is the Maru in danger?"

"Dylan." Trance said very strongly. "Just as there are things that you cannot tell, there are things that I also cannot reveal. As long as I have been a member of your crew, it should be enough for you when I say that if you don't call Harper back from this mission, things will never be the same again."

"You know about the mission?"

"DYLAN!" Trance shouted. "CALL THEM BACK!"


	2. Chapter 2

Onboard the Eureka Maru, Becca Valentine piloted her ship expertly toward the surface of the planet Maligna, while Rhade monitored for any signs of danger.

With Becca and Rhade preoccupied, Harper went down to the Maru's engine room and opened up a wall panel behind a cluttered workbench. Harper reached in and pulled out what looked like a metallic brief case. Harper opened the case and quickly scanned the contents. Everything seemed to be in place. Dylan had told him to arm himself well, so that's exactly what he intended to do.

Inside the case were two gauss guns with holsters, several forms of explosives, three throwing knives, a cable for his cerebral port, a vial of poison, and half a dozen fake ID's. Harper strapped on the two guns, placed the knives and explosives in various pockets of his cargo pants, and dropped the interface cable in his tool belt. He decided that for this mission he could do without the fake ID and poison.

Having gotten what he needed, he placed the case back in the wall and replaced the wall panel. Unfortunately, unknown to Harper, in replacing the wall panel he accidentally cut the wires for the Maru's communications system.

On Andromeda's Command Deck.  
"Rommie." Dylan said. "Try contacting the Maru again."

"I'm sorry Dylan." The Avatar replied. "There's still no response."

"Continue sending an automated message to them every ten minutes instructing them to return immediately."

"Yes Captain."

Trance was also on the Command deck and when she realized that they were unable to contact the Maru her heart sank. Why couldn't she have seen her vision yesterday, or even ten minutes sooner? That would have given her time to have stopped Harper.

"They have to come back." Trance cried.

"Well," Dylan said. "I could contact the ship yard authorities on Maligna and have them contact the Maru's crew when they land."

"No!" Trance shouted, but then quickly calmed herself. "I'm sorry Dylan, but that would be a bad idea."

"Trance you need to tell me what's going on. It's clear that you obviously know more than you're telling."

"They know." Trance said in a whispered voice.

"Who knows?" Dylan asked. "And what exactly do they know?"

"One of the organizations that are after the package that you sent Harper to get, know that the Commonwealth is sending someone to pick it up today. That organization is called P.A.G.A.N. (People Against Genetic Alteration and Nietzcheans)."

Realization dawned on Dylan.  
"Trance,… that's the same organization Harper used to work for."

"Yes Dylan." Trance said. "And they weren't happy with Harper for leaving."

"Trance, What am I supposed to do?" Dylan asked. "How can we help Harper?"

"There is a small possibility that Harper will be able to complete this mission unharmed Dylan, without any help from us. There is a slightly greater chance that he completes the mission but suffers terrible physical injuries including permanent physical disabilities. Another probability that I see is Becca and Rhade bringing Harper back, his mind reduced to that of a vegetable. But the strongest and most possible probability is that Harper, Rhade, and Becca all die down on that planet."

After hearing what Trance had told him, Dylan decided that he would take a slip fighter down to the planet and make sure that his friends returned to Andromeda safely, but he was so engrossed by Trance's rare openness about the possible futures that he never noticed that Rommie had left Command.

"Captain." Andromeda's hologram said. "One of my slip fighters has just launched."

"Who's piloting it?" Dylan asked, but as he looked around Command and noticed Rommie missing he knew the answer to his question.

"My avatar is piloting it captain." Andromeda answered. "…Incoming message from the slip fighter."

Rommie's image appeared on the main view screen.  
"I'm sorry Dylan." Rommie said. "But I won't stay up here while so many of my crew are in danger. I know you Dylan and the way you think. You were probably about to do the same thing, however you are too important to the New Commonwealth. They can't lose you, and somebody has to stay with the ship in case _I'm_ attacked. Don't worry. I'll bring them back."

As the Maru was about to land, Becca attempted to contact the spaceport but discovered that the communications system was offline.

"Harper!" Becca shouted.

"Yeah Boss." Harper replied, as he entered the Maru's Command Deck.

"Communications are offline!"

"Don't worry Becca." Harper said. "I'll fix it."

Harper opened up a panel near the communication system on the Command deck and began searching for the problem. Unable to locate anything wrong, he began bypassing and rewiring the system in an attempt to get it back online. Finally Harper replaced the panel and got up off the floor.

"I've got good news and bad news Boss." Harper said.

"What's the good news Harper?" Rhade asked.

"The good news is that we can communicate to the spaceport our intentions to land."

"And the bad news?" Becca asked.

"We won't be able to hear their reply." Harper said. "We can transmit but we can't receive any incoming transmissions."

"Oh that's just great!" Becca exclaimed. "How long till you can fix it properly?"

"Fixing it won't take long at all." Harper said. "But first I'll have to locate the faulty wiring. That could take several hours."

"In that case," Becca said, "We'll land first, then you can work on finding and repairing the problem while Rhade and I get the needed supplies."

"What about getting permission to land?" Rhade asked.

"Just let me worry about that." Becca said.

Becca positioned the Maru for landing and activated the Maru's communication system.  
"Maligna Spaceport, this is Captain Rebecca Valentine of the Eureka Maru. Our communications systems have malfunctioned and we are unable to receive incoming transmissions. We request permission to land but are unable to hear your reply. We will assume that permission is granted. Captain Valentine out."

"That's your plan?" Rhade asked. "What if they decide to fire on us?"

"Wouldn't be the first time." Harper said. Harper and Becca looked at each other with grins on their faces, remembering the many times they had to leave various planets and drifts while under fire.

"Perhaps not." Rhade said. "But it could very well be the last."  



	3. Chapter 3

Inside the Spaceport's control room, a man sitting at a console informed his superior of the message he had just received.

"What are your orders sir?" The man asked. "Do I let them land or fire?"

The superior officer was a tall, muscular man, with dark hair. "Let them land." He announced. "I've been expecting them." He then exited the control room and met with two other men. These two looked like two ordinary civilians. There was no menacing look to their appearance whatsoever. Of course looks can be deceiving.

The three stood where they would have a good view of the Maru landing.

Becca finished landing the Maru and opened the hatch. Becca, Rhade and Harper exited the Maru half expecting to be surrounded by a mob of angry and armed Port authorities. They were surprised when all they saw was three men slowly walking their way.

"Captain Valentine, I presume." The superior officer said. "My name is Captain William Fletcher. We received your communication and fully understand your situation. May we be of service to you?"

"Thank you Captain Fletcher." Becca replied as she shook Fletcher's hand. "But my engineer said he could handle it. I do appreciate the offer and for you allowing us to land."

"Not a problem captain Valentine." Fletcher said. "Technical malfunctions happen. I have experienced them myself, and they seem to always happen at the most inopportune moments."

"Ain't that the truth." Becca replied.

"I'll go ahead and start on the repairs Boss." Harper said.

"You do that Shorty." Becca replied. "We'll see you in about five hours." Harper went back inside the Maru and closed the hatch. Becca politely smiled at Fletcher and his two companions and She and Rhade walked away to begin their search for supplies.

"Is it just me?" Becca asked. "Or did that seem too easy?"

"I was wondering if you noticed." Rhade said. "I think we better watch our backs."

"What about Harper?" Becca asked. "He's alone back there."

"He'll be safe as long as he stays on the ship."

After Rhade and Becca were out of hearing range, Fletcher instructed his two henchmen to follow them.

"What about the engineer?" One of the men asked.

"He is of little importance." Fletcher said. "Besides, the engineer will be too busy repairing the ship to be of any concern. It's obvious that Captain Valentine and the Nietzchean are the ones going after the package. Follow them and if they split up; Rondal, you stick with Captain Valentine while Krandal follows the Nietzchean. Now get going!"

Fletcher's men left the spaceport, following Becca and Rhade. They were careful not to follow too close. They were very good at their job and most people would have never known they were being followed. Rhade, however, was not like most people. His senses were even better than most other Nietzchean's.

He quietly informed Becca that they were being followed.

"What should we do?" Becca whispered.

"Nothing yet." Rhade replied. "We'll continue with our shopping and see what transpires. Somehow I don't think this has to do with Spaceport Authority. If they do attack, I should have no problem dealing with them."

"I hope Harper stays on the Maru." Becca said. "Until he fixes the communications system, we can't even warn him that something strange is going on here."

tttttttttttttttttttttttttttttttttttttttt

Onboard the Maru, Harper came to the conclusion that the problem wasn't in any of the equipment on the command deck, so he began tracing the Com cables throughout the ship. Within thirty minutes he had traced the cables back to engineering without finding any faulty wires. He then removed the wall panel that hid his secret case. As soon as the panel was off he saw the cut wires and cursed himself for being so careless.

"How could I have done something so stupid?" Harper asked himself. "Oh well, no sense in crying about it now. At least it's an easy fix."

It only took Harper a few minutes to splice the wires back together and replace the wall panel.

"There!" Harper said. "As good as new."

Harper left engineering and returned to the Command Deck. After undoing his temporary fix that allowed them to transmit to the Spaceport, he initiated the communications system.

A message appeared on the Maru's computer screen.

COMMUNICATIONS SYSTEM REBOOTING

10 MINUTES TO COMPLETE

"Perfect!" Harper said. "Now I have time to get that package for Dylan."

Harper went to the Maru's crew quarters and grabbed a long black leather jacket from underneath his bunk. Inside the jacket were several High Guard force lances. He then put on a pair of dark sunglasses and exited the Maru.

On the Maru's Command Deck, the communications system finished rebooting and was back online. If anyone would have been there, they would have heard a message from Andromeda instructing them to return immediately.


	4. Chapter 3 and a half

As Harper headed for the lab, two men began to follow him.  
"Why are we following this scrawny kid Blake?"

"Because I know him Mack." Blake said. "In fact he used to work for us."

"As what? A delivery boy?"

"No." Blake replied. "He was and probably still is one of the best Purifiers around."

"No way!" Mack exclaimed. "He was a Purifier?"

"In the short time he was with us, he killed over two hundred Ubers, a dozen Magog, and twenty five genetically altered beings of various races."

"He don't look like much." Mack said as his mind tried to grasp the fact that the small man they were following was able to kill so easily."

"Looks can be deceiving." Blake replied. "Things have definitely changed. I would never have imagined Seamus Harper befriending an Uber. Fletcher was a fool to send his men after those other two. They probably don't even know about the package."

"Wait a minute!" Mack said. "Nobody leaves the Organization. How is it that this boy was able to leave and is still breathing?"

"Like I said. He's the best. We had a mess to clean up at the office after he was through,… those of us that was still alive that is."

Back at the spaceport a lone slip fighter landed and a beautiful woman with dark hair jumped from the pilots seat down to the ground. She immediately made her way to the Maru. Rommie entered the Maru's access code and was shortly on the command deck.

Upon entering the command deck, she heard the automated message being sent to her ship self coming from the Maru's Com system. She also noticed that the communications system had just recently been brought back online. She decided to contact Dylan and let him know what she had found.

"Dylan." Andromeda's hologram said. "I'm receiving an incoming message from the Maru."

"It's about time!" Dylan said.

Rommie's image appeared on Andromeda's view screen.

"Dylan." Rommie said. "I found the Maru, but Rhade, Becca , and Harper are already gone. It appears they had a malfunction in the Com system. Harper must have repaired it before he left. What would you like for me to do?"

"Now you're waiting for orders?" Dylan asked. "You didn't feel the need to wait when you left in the slip fighter."

"I'm sorry captain." Rommie said. "I was thinking,… illogically. My emotions seem be interfering with Commonwealth protocol."

"Forget it Rommie." Dylan said. "Since you're already there, See if you can locate Harper, keep him safe, and help him complete his mission."

Rommie had heard Dylan and Trance mention a mission before she left in the slip fighter, but she wasn't aware of any of the details, except that it involved her engineer and some type of package. She knew she should have waited and found out more details before leaving, but she was hurt and angry that Dylan didn't inform her about the mission and that he would endanger her Harper like this…. Her Harper? Where did that come from? Rommie shook her head and decided to have Harper run a complete diagnostics of her systems when they got back to Andromeda.

"I would be happy to help Harper complete his mission captain, if I knew what that mission was." Rommie said.

Dylan felt somewhat uncomfortable. Was Rommie mad at him for not telling her about the mission? He wondered if Andromeda was also upset with him. He looked around Command at the three images of his ship. Six eyes glared back at him waiting for a reply. "Oh yeah." Dylan thought to himself. "They're upset alright. Now I need to explain to them why I didn't inform them of the mission in the first place and why I sent Harper and not Rhade. But how do I give my reasons for sending Harper without telling about Harper's past with the P.A.G.A.N. Organization?"

Dylan explained the mission in complete detail including the name of Harper's contact and the code words for getting the package. He did his best at explaining his reasons for choosing Harper over Rhade without divulging any information of Harper's past.

"Thank you Dylan." Rommie said. "I'll find Harper and let him know I'm here to help."

Trance sat in her room as tears rolled down her face. "I'm sorry Harper. I'm so sorry." Trance looked down at her bonsai as she studied the possible futures. There was one she didn't mention to Dylan, one that she could possibly live with, but she was unsure if Harper could.


	5. Chapter 4

Harper was half way to the lab, when he realized someone was following him. He knew it would be bad to let them follow him to the lab, and there was no way he was going to let them get their hands on the package, whatever it was. So Harper decided to lead them up a dead-end alley.

Blake and Mack had no idea that Harper had spotted them.

They turned into the alley to follow Harper, but he was gone.

Slowly they walked on into the alley but they couldn't see Harper anywhere.

"What's going on Blake?" Mack asked. "Where'd he go?"

A light bulb finally flashed on inside Blake's head. "He spotted us!" Blake shouted. "He knows we're following him!"

"Give the man a cigar." Harper said, stepping out from behind a garbage container with both guns pointed at the men that had been following him. "Long time no see Blake."

Blake started to draw his gun. Harper shot the ground between Blake's feet. "I don't think you really want to try that Blake. How about you and your friend over there slowly remove your gun belts and throw them on the ground."

"Come on Seamus." Blake said. "You don't have to be like that. All we want is the package. I'll tell you what, if you bring it to us, I will personally see to it that you get reinstated back into the Organization with no penalties held against you for leaving. Heck, we'll even pay you for delivering the package. What do you say Seamus?" Unknown to Blake, his friend Mack was thinking, and that's never a good thing. It appeared to Mack that Harper was considering Blake's offer. It also appeared to Mack that Harper was distracted. It occurred to him that Harper might be distracted enough for him to shoot him down. …Mack was wrong.

The second Mack's gun cleared it's holster, a round from Harper's gauss gun knocked him to the ground. Acting on reflex, Blake drew his gun and shot at Harper. His aim was off and quite by accident ended up killing a rat that had been feeding on the garbage in the alley. Blake ran for cover as he shot randomly in Harper's direction.

Harper returned fire as Blake ran for cover. Blake didn't make it.

Harper walked over to Blake's body where it had fallen. He was still alive, but he wouldn't be that way for long. "It didn't have to end like this Blake." Harper said. "Why didn't you just lay down your weapons like I asked you to?"

"Mack wasn't… very… smart." Blake muttered as he coughed up blood. "I told him,… about you. He… didn't believe. I didn't….."

Harper placed his guns back in their holsters and turned to leave the alley. "That's what made my job so easy." Harper said. "Nobody believed that a Kludge from Earth could be a threat. Those that learned their lesson didn't live to pass it on."


	6. Chapter 5

Fletcher's men, Rondal and Krandal continued to follow Becca and Rhade, but they were getting increasingly frustrated. They had been following them for several hours but they still hadn't picked up "the package". They watched as Becca and Rhade entered a local tavern.

Becca and Rhade walked up to the bar and sit down. Becca cleared her throat to get the owner's attention.

The owner was also the bartender. He was an older man, in his late fifties. He had dark hair that was just beginning to gray on the sides.

"I'll be with you in just a minute." He replied, as he finished cleaning another beer mug.

"I thought this was supposed to be the best tavern in town Old Man." Becca said. "I guess I was wrong."

The moment he heard her voice, the bartender turned around with a big grin on his face.

"Becky, It's been a long time since I've seen you face to face. How have you been?"

"Becky?" Rhade asked teasing.

"Don't even start Uber." Becca replied.

Rhade looked angry for a second, but his expression quickly changed. If there was anything Becca was sensitive about, it was her name. He noticed that the bartender was still smiling.

"Becca do you know this gentleman?"

"Rhade." Becca said. "This is Mr. Felix Rain. He and dad used to best of friends. Dad used to make regular stops at Mr. Rain's Tavern whenever we were in this sector. That was before things got bad." Becca didn't elaborate on what she meant by "bad", but Rhade knew enough of Becca and her father's past to understand what she was referring to.

"Once again," Felix said. "I would like to express my deepest sympathies for what happened to your father Becky."

"Thanks Old Man." Becca said. Ever since she was a little girl, that was what she called Felix. It started with him annoying her by refusing to call her anything but Becky, so Becca decided that if he wouldn't call her by her name then she wouldn't call him by his. It was a bit childish, but she was a child at the time and it seemed totally logical to her.

"Did you get my package?" Becca asked.

"Yeah." Felix answered. " I got your order two weeks ago and found a dealer. It was pretty expensive. This stuff is getting harder and harder to come by. You really should try to cut back. It's not a healthy habit. Most people that deal the stuff, like to wait till you get hooked then they up their price."

Rhade listened to Felix, and the more he heard the more concerned he got for his friend. Could she really be hooked on drugs again? He hoped it wasn't Flash. He thought back to the past few days, but couldn't remember Becca acting irregular in any way. If it wasn't Flash then what was it? He was about to ask Becca if she had lost her mind, but Becca was talking to Felix again.

"That's why I keep buying at different locations and have others like you act as a middle man for me Old Man."

"I hope you enjoy it." Felix said. "It's supposed to be some of the best chocolate in this galaxy."

"Chocolate?" Rhade asked.

"Yes Chocolate!" Becca said. "What did you think it was?"

"Never mind." Rhade said, relieved that he had misinterpreted what was going on. "I think I'll take a drink now."

Rondal and Krandal watched as the bartender handed Becca a rectangular package. They couldn't hear the conversation, but they could tell by the way Becca was handling the package that it must be something very precious.

"That's it!" Rondal announced to his partner. "That's got to be "the package."

"What should we do?" Krandal asked.

"Contact the others and have them meet us outside the bar as soon as possible. The boss will be pleased with us Krandal. We'll probably get promoted."


	7. Chapter 6

As soon as Rommie had exited the Maru, she headed for the Synthori Laboratory. She was pretty sure that Becca and Rhade could take care of themselves, and since Harper was the one with the dangerous mission, he would logically be the one in the most danger.

On her way to the lab, she came across two dead bodies recently shot by a gauss gun. She wondered if Harper would have been in the area when the two were killed. He could have possibly seen the shooter, …or been the shooter. Then another thought occurred to her. If Harper had been here, he could be hurt. She searched the alley, but she didn't detect any blood that matched Harper's DNA.

Relieved for the moment, Rommie knelt down next to the nearest body. An ID card had apparently fallen to the ground when he was shot. Rommie picked up the card, thinking it might have the name of the dead man, but instead all it said was (P.A.G.A.N.) in big black letters, and in smaller text below, "People Against Genetic Alteration and Nietzcheans" .

Rommie searched the other man and found a similar card.

She had no doubt now, considering what Harper's mission was. Harper was here and apparently these men had tried to stop him. The part of Rommie that was still a warship had to smile approvingly at the skill and efficiency in which Harper dealt with his assailants.

Rommie left the alley and continued on her way. There was bound to be more than these two, and that meant that Harper was still in danger.

Rommie walked two more blocks and stopped dead in her tracks. It was difficult for her to process what she saw. The street looked like a battlefield. Dead bodies lay scattered all around. She scanned the area and quickly located a total of twenty five dead bodies, …more or less. It seemed that some had been in close proximity to some sort of explosive devices and there wasn't much left.

"What happened here?" Rommie wondered aloud.

"Cough!… A devil." Rommie heard someone say. Apparently everyone wasn't dead,…yet.

Rommie walked over to the dying man that had spoke. He had two shots to his chest and a large piece of shrapnel embedded in his right arm. Rommie knew that he wouldn't last.

"What did you say?" Rommie asked. "Who did this?"

"A devil!" He replied again with fear in his eyes. "A devil named,… cough …Seamus Harp…er."

Rommie closed the dead man's eyes and began to get up when she noticed something sticking out of the dead man's shirt pocket. She wasn't surprised to discover that it was another P.A.G.A.N. card.

As Rommie left the scene of carnage she noticed an empty Sparky can in the middle of the street. She couldn't help but wonder about a man that was capable of doing something like this and then casually take the time to drink a can of Sparky. She thought she knew her engineer, but if someone would have told her this morning that Harper was capable of something like this, she would have laughed at them.

A thought then made it's way into her processors and the more she thought about it, the more certain she was. "Dylan knew." She thought to herself. "He knew Harper was like this. That's the real reason he sent him on this mission. Why didn't he tell me? And if Harper can do this, what's Trance worried about?"

Rommie turned a corner, just in time to see Harper walk inside the Synthori Laboratory.

Harper walked up to the receptionist and gave her a typical Harper grin.

"Hello." Harper said, grabbing a chunk of bloody skin tissue off of his otherwise clean coat and throwing it into a waste can as if it were a piece of lint. "I'm here to see Dr. Doodlewaddle


	8. Chapter 7

"We've been expecting you sir." The receptionist replied. She then pressed a button on her desk, and looking at the image of a man on her desktop view screen, she said. "Doctor. The gentleman has arrived to pick up the package."

"Very good." The doctor replied. "Send him in."

"You may enter now sir."

"Thanks."

As Harper neared the door it slid open automatically and he entered. He expected to see a doctor's office or possibly a lab, but instead he entered a room that appeared to be someone's living quarters. There was a sofa and several armchairs, a small kitchen, and a bar. Straight ahead of Harper, on the other side of the room sit an elderly man behind a large desk.

"Don't just stand there young man." The doctor said. "Come on in and have a seat."

Harper walked over to desk and began to sit, but decided he had better get the formalities over with.  
"Hello." Harper said as he shook hands with Dr. Doodlewaddle. "Dr. Doodlewaddle, I'm the Super Genius and I've come to pick up the Yo-Yo."

"You did that very well!" The doctor said, sounding somewhat surprised.

"Did what well?" Harper asked.

"You know." The doctor explained. "The whole Doodlewaddle, Super Genius, and YO-YO thing. Personally, I can't say it without chuckling. I'd like to know who thinks up these crazy codenames and passwords."

"At least mine fits." Harper said.

The doctor laughed.  
"Yes, I have heard many interesting tales of you Mister Harper. I understand that it was your captain Hunt that personally chose you for this mission."

"That's right." Harper said. "But I didn't realize you knew my real name or about Dylan." Harper was a bit confused. Why were they doing the whole cloak and dagger thing if the doctor already knew who he was?

"I'm sorry about that." The doctor said. "Let me explain. First thing, my name isn't really Doodlewaddle, it's Dr. Emmett Brown, but you can call me Doc. It seems the Commonwealth enjoys the whole cloak and dagger thing, but to be perfectly honest, I already knew you would be the one coming to meet me today. I can't tell you how I know. You wouldn't believe me if I did."

"Try me." Harper said. "I've seen a lot of strange things in my life, especially since I became Andromeda's engineer and helped Dylan restore the Commonwealth."

"Yes, but,…" Doctor Brown said. "…Have you ever traveled back through time?"

"Been there done that." Harper replied. "Wait a minute. Are you saying that you're a time traveler?"

"Yes, but keep your voice down." Doc hushed him. "It's not something I want everyone to know."

"Is that what the package is?" Harper asked. "Some sort of time traveling device? I thought it was supposed to be some sort of new genetic enhancement or a super immunity drug?"

"No." Doc said. "Unfortunately my time vehicle was badly damaged two years ago and I have been unable to get the necessary parts needed to repair it. So in the meantime I joined the staff here at Synthori and have been able to learn much about cybernetics, nano technology, and artificial intelligence…."

As the doctor continued talking about his contribution to the Lab, a beautiful woman entered the room and handed Doctor Brown a can of Sparky Cola.

"Would you like something to drink?" She asked Harper.

"I never turn down a Sparky." Harper said, as he received the can with grin. The woman looked very familiar to Harper, but he couldn't recall ever meeting her before. Perhaps she just reminded him of someone,… but the feeling wouldn't leave him alone.

"Excuse me." Harper said to her. "I know this is going to sound like a lame pickup line, but have we met before?"

"No." She replied. "This is the first time we have met."

She turned to leave but Doc stopped her.

"Sari. Please stay." Doc said. "Have a seat. It's almost time."

"Yes doctor." She replied. Instead of sitting, she remained standing near the exit.

"Doc." Harper said. "I don't mean to sound rude, but I'm sort of in a hurry, so if you could just give me the package or tell me where it's at, I'll be on my way."

"I understand Mister Harper." Doc said. "But before you leave, could I ask a favor of you?"

"That depends on the favor." Harper said.

Dr. Emmett Brown handed him a flexi with a list of parts.

"These are parts I need to repair my time vehicle." He said. "After you are finished with your mission, I am willing to pay you generously to acquire these for me."

"There's some pretty rare and hard to find items on here Doc." Harper said as he read the flexi. "But I'll see what I can do. Now where's that package?"

"Sari." Doc Brown said. "This is the gentleman I told you about earlier. Are you ready?"

"I'm ready Emmett." Sari said. "I will miss you."

Harper listened to the conversation and couldn't believe what he was hearing.  
"Wait just a minute!" Harper said. "Are you saying that she's the "package" I'm supposed to pick up? A girl? I didn't realize I was getting the job of a baby sitter!"

"Calm down Mister Harper." Doc said. "One, as you can obviously see, she is not a baby. Two, She is no ordinary girl. She is the first genetically engineered cybernetic organism."

"She's a GECO?" Harper asked.

"Yes." Doc laughed. "I suppose you could call her that."

"So what exactly does that mean?" Harper asked.

"Basically she is an organic AI. Her skeletal system is constructed of a new metal designed at this facility. We call it living metal. It has the ability to grow and heal. Her outer body is organic, and her Brain is part organic and cybernetic. Any other questions you might have, I'm sure Sari will be able to answer them."

"Alright." Harper said. "I really wasn't expecting something like this, but I promise I'll take good care of her Doc."

"You better." Doctor Brown said as he watched Harper leave with the young woman, a woman that Doc had come to think of as a daughter. It saddened him to see her go, but there was no place in the past for a being such as her and he had heard enough of the Commonwealth ship Andromeda and her crew to know that they would take good care of her. He just hoped those weak minded P.A.G.A.N. people didn't give Harper and Sari any trouble before they got some place safe.  



	9. Chapter 8

As Harper and Sari left the Synthori Lab, they met Rommie waiting outside. Harper was shocked to see her, but was happy nevertheless.

"Rom Doll!" Harper said as he gave Rommie a quick friendly hug. "Glad to see you, but what are you doing here?"

"Dylan had reason to believe that you may encounter more trouble than he originally anticipated and thought you may be in need of help." Rommie neglected to mention the fact that she left before Dylan officially commanded her to, or that the reason she was really there was that she was concerned for Harper's safety. "But from what I saw a few blocks back and in the alley, it looks like you are more than able to complete this mission on your own."

Harper became visibly nervous. Even if Rommie hadn't been an android she would have been able to sense that Harper was worried about what she would think of him, after seeing what he was capable of.

"Um,.. Rommie, look…" Harper began, trying to think of a way to explain to his friend and greatest creation how he was able to do what he did, without telling her too much about his past. "Rommie, before I became your engineer, I did some things that I'm not proud of. I performed certain,… "_jobs_" for some people and tried to justify it by telling myself that they were just Ubers. Just like the Ubers that killed my family."

"These "jobs" were hits, weren't they?" Rommie asked. "You were a paid killer."

"Yes and no Rommie." Harper said. "It's true that I got paid for what I did, but I wasn't a killer. I was an assassin."

"What's the difference Harper?"

"Killing is what I did back there." Harper said, pointing in the direction of the street where Rommie had seen the bodies. "An assassination is an art, and when done perfectly nobody even suspects that it was anything more than an unfortunate accident. At the time I believed that I was doing the universe a favor. It's not like I killed every Uber I met. Most of them were slave traders, Flash dealers, organized crime bosses, and the occasional Magog. It seemed almost like a public service for the common and decent people of the universe." This was more than Harper had intended to say, but he found it hard to keep anything from Rommie.

Rommie listened to Harper and tried to keep an open mind. "When did this happen? She asked. "How did you become an assassin?"

"That's a longer story Rom Doll. "Harper said. "I promise, I'll tell you everything later. Right now, however, I need to get Sari safely back to the Maru.

"Sari?" Rommie asked as she looked at the young woman standing at Harper's side. Rommie immediately knew the woman, or thought she did until she detected that she wasn't entirely organic. "_Very odd_" Rommie thought. "_She appears to be organic as well as cybernetic. A cyborg perhaps_."

"It's a pleasure to meet you Sari." Rommie said.

"Thank you." Sari replied. "Will you be joining Mister Harper and I?"

"Yes." Rommie replied. "I think I will, just in case you run into more trouble."

"You won't get any arguments from me." Harper said. "The more beautiful women the better."

Rommie rolled her eyes, although a part of her enjoyed it when Harper complimented her beauty.

As the three began their walk back to the Maru, several more agents of the P.A.G.A.N organization began following them at a distance. They knew that Harper was dangerous, but now, according to their scans, he was now joined by a very sophisticated android and another female that registered as organic. They weren't concerned about the second woman, but the android could possibly be a problem. What they were concerned about the most, however, was that Harper had exited the lab without any visible package. The only conclusion they could come up with was that it must have been small enough for Harper to stashed it in his pocket.


	10. Chapter 9

Back at Felix Rain's tavern, Becca and Felix were reminiscing about old times. As the two talked, Rhade glanced from time to time over at the entrance.

Becca noticed Rhade's actions and almost laughed. It almost looked like he had developed a nervous twitch.

"What's wrong with you?" Becca asked. "Are you in a hurry to leave or something?"

"No." Rhade said. "In fact it may be too late for that."

"What do you mean?"

"Remember Fletcher's goons?"

"You mean the two that's been following us all day?" Becca asked.

"Yeah." Rhade said. "It appears that they've been getting reinforcements while we've been here. At least a dozen men have joined them, and they're waiting out front."

"Are you talking about Captain Fletcher?" Felix asked.

"Yes." Becca said. "You know him?"

"I know enough to stay out of his way. Once a week his thugs come in here and demand protection money. I pay and they leave me and my customers alone. He also operates a big time casino on the orbiting space station. That's where he generally stays unless something really big is going on down here. It seems he hates planets."

"I understand the part about hating planets." Becca said. "But I wonder what's so special about us being here that made him meet us at the space port?"

"He was at the space port?" Felix asked. "When?"

"A few hours ago." Rhade said. "When we arrived."

"And you say his boys have been following you all day?"

"Just like our own shadows." Becca said.

"Becky, I know that ever since you joined the crew of that Commonwealth ship that you're probably involved in a lot of dangerous missions and meet a lot of nefarious individuals, but believe me, they're nothing compared to this man. He'll act all nice and sweet to your face one minute and order your deaths the next. And those genetically altered thugs of his would rather kill you than look at you."

Genetically altered?" Becca asked. "Those two at the space port didn't look like much to me."

"That must have been Rondal and Krandal." Felix said. "If they were the only two we had to deal with there wouldn't be a problem. They are a bit slow mentally. Some say that it was caused by some bad experimental nanos, but I think they're just naturally dumb."

"What about the law?" Rhade asked.

"Fletcher is the law." Felix said with a sigh. "If he's after you, it can't be good."

Becca glanced at the large window in the front of the tavern and noticed that there was now a larger group gathered out front.

"You wouldn't happen to have a back door in this place would you Old Man?" Becca asked.

"That I do." Felix said. "You wait here while I go to see if it's clear."

Felix didn't take long. He was soon back with a frown on his face.

"I'm sorry Becky." He said, shaking his head. "There's at least as many back there as there are in the front."

Rommie noticed the men following them and tapped Harper on the shoulder to get his attention.

"Yeah, Rommie." Harper said.

"Harper, I thought you should know that we're being followed." Rommie said.

"I know. It's more of my old friends. It seems that some people never learn."

"If they are your friends," Sari said. "Why are they hiding from you?"

"They used to be my friends Sari." Harper tried to explain. "Several years ago when I was a different person."

"How can you be a different person?" Sari asked in a childlike tone. "Do you have the ability change?"

"Yes." Harper said. "At least I thought I did, but not in the way that you mean. What changed is my thinking and the way I react to people that are different than myself.

Years ago when Becca rescued me from Earth, I wasn't the frightened kid that everyone thought I was. I spent my entire life stealing and killing in order to survive. For sixteen years of my life if there was two things I learned, it was that the only good Uber was a dead Uber, and Magog were the most vile, evil, and terrifying creatures in existence and there was no good in any of them. I later learned that I was wrong about both. Although so far Rev is still the only good Magog I've ever met.

The first few weeks aboard the Maru weren't too bad. In fact it would have been great if it wasn't for Bobby, but I don't have time to tell you what I think of that joker. As I was saying, things were going pretty good, but one day we stopped at a drift and while I was at a bar a man approached me.

"Buy you a drink?" He asked.

"Sure." I said. "Never turn down a free meal, my Da' always said."

"A beer hardly qualifies as a meal." He said.

"On Earth you take what you can." I blurted out without thinking. Here I was trying to pass as a spacer. I didn't want everyone to know that I was mud foot.

"I took you for an Earther." He said, sounding pleased with himself.

"Look!" I said getting very defensive. "I don't know what you think you know about Earthers, but whatever it is, it's wrong!" My hand was already on my gun and ready to draw if the guy so much as blinked.

"I meant no disrespect." He said. "In fact I understand that for one to survive there, you gotta be pretty tough."

"You got that right." I told him, still not relaxing my hold on my sidearm.

"I assume you aren't too fond of Nietzcheans or Magog?"

"Who is?" I asked.

"I'd like to offer you a job. I understand that you work on a cargo ship?"

"Yes, but if you need something shipped you better talk to the boss. She handles all business deals."

"Not this one." He said. "I don't need anything shipped. What I need is someone to be in the right place at the right time. At this very moment a colleague of mine is making certain that **_you_** will be at that right place and time."

"How's he doing that?" I asked, becoming more and more suspicious.

"He's making arrangements with your captain to ship some containers of medical supplies to seven drifts in this sector. If you agree to take the jobs I offer, you and your captain will get paid much more than the agreed shipping fee."

"What kind of jobs are we talking about?" I asked, although I had already guessed.

"I'm part of an organization that, like yourself, has a strong dislike for all Nietzcheans. Here's our card. Basically we're in the business of making the Universe a better and safer place for genetically pure individuals like yourself to live."

"Why choose me?" I asked. "I find it hard to believe that you took one look at me and said "Now there looks like someone that can put an Uber down."

"Actually we've been planning this since the day you left Earth,… Harper."

"...and that's how I became a member of the _Kill An Uber If You Can Club_."


	11. Chapter 10

_I would like to thank everyone for reading and for the kind reviews. Here's another chapter. I hope you like it._

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:) Iv'e been having a hard time inserting more than one space between paragraphs. I thought this might help. :)

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Sari had listened eagerly to every word of Harper's tale. She wanted to understand as much as she could about her new protector. This being the first time that she had ever left the lab's controlled environment, she was to say the least a bit nervous. The fact that Harper's friend Rommie joined them made her feel a little better about leaving. She knew right away that Rommie was an android and the Andromeda Ascendant's avatar. She hoped that they would become friends, but she didn't even know if she would be with them long enough to develop such a relationship.

In many ways she was still very much like a child. The Doc gave her information, taught her the basics of interacting with organic life forms, and he had a team of specialists train her in various techniques of self defense, but she was still having a hard time understanding her emotions.

The thing that bothered her the most was the visions and dreams.

She was told that they would soon pass, but instead they were happening more frequently. She knew that most sentient beings dreamed, but this seemed different than what she had heard of normal dreams. They were more like memories, but the lab had been her home since the day she was created, so if they weren't dreams and they weren't memories, what could they be?

Harper finished talking and it seemed that Sari's mind was elsewhere.

"Are you ok Sari?" Harper asked. "I didn't intend to bore you to sleep, although I've been known to do that."

"I'm sorry Harper." Sari said. "Truthfully, I heard every word. So, today you no longer feel hate toward the Magog and Nietzcheans?"

"Well,… uh,… I wouldn't go as far as to say that." Harper said. "But I do now realize that there can possibly be some good in both, and that it's wrong to hate or judge somebody based on their species."

"Everything you've done," Rommie said, "since you've been here, it's a part of your past that you didn't want to revisit isn't it?"

"I'm not proud of what I did Rommie. In fact I wish I could forget I ever was that person. Rommie,… it got to the point that I,…"

"You what Harper?" Rommie asked, placing a comforting hand on his shoulder. "What did you do?"

"It got to the point,… that I enjoyed it." Harper said as he looked to the ground in shame. "Today when I killed those first two in the alley, there was a rush that I hadn't felt in a long time. I liked it Rommie. Divine help me, _I liked it_! By the time the group attacked me in the street, I was feeling a high that no Flash could compare to. There was no feeling of compassion or mercy. I felt totally justified by what I was doing. I was performing a public service." Harper's words were mixed with a combination of crying and a disturbing laugh. "And you know, the irony of it is that's exactly what they taught me. They just never dreamed it would be used against them. After I left their organization I did my best to bury that part of my life. I threw myself into repairing the Maru and anything else I could think of to keep my mind from remembering what I did and what I had become." Harper took a deep breath then continued. "They made me what I was Rommie, and this mission brought it all back. I don't know if I can ever bury that part of me again."

Rommie looked at the man standing next to her and realized that he no longer looked like the small sickly boy that crawled through her service ducts. His stature hadn't changed, but there was a look in his eyes that she hadn't seen before. This was not a man that needed protected. This instead, was a man that others, if they ever crossed him, needed protected from. Rommie realized something else from Harper's own words, and that was that he couldn't control himself. His mentality while he was fighting reminded Rommie of some records she read once of an ancient people from Earth called Vikings, particularly their warriors that they called Berserkers.

Rommie knew that it troubled Harper greatly what he had done, but what was worse was that he may be unable to control this long time hidden part of his nature. She began to wonder how Dylan could do this to him. Dylan somehow found out about Harper's past and thought what? That it would come in handy on this mission? He probably never even gave any thought to how it might effect Harper.

"Don't worry Harper." Rommie said. "You'll get through this. Then we'll have a long talk with Captain Hunt."

Rommie placed her arm around Harper's shoulders, as they continued to walk back to the spaceport.

Before they made it to the spaceport, they noticed a large crowd of men standing outside a small tavern.

"What's going on down there?" Harper asked. "Is the place giving away free beer or something?"

"It doesn't look like any of them are going inside." Sari said.

"She's right Harper. They seem to be waiting for something, or someone."

"Any chance you can boost your audio sensors and hear what they're saying ?" Harper asked.

"Yes." Both ladies answered. Rommie looked at Sari and smiled. Sari smiled back.

"It seems I'm the only one lacking superior hearing," Harper said. "So will you two gorgeous ladies please let me know what you hear?"

"We will Harper." Rommie said. "Also it might be wise to stay out of sight until we find out what's going on."

"Good idea." Harper said, as they hid behind several cargo crates. "I don't think any of them noticed us yet, although our current entourage is still watching us."

"They haven't made a move yet." Rommie said. "But that doesn't mean they won't."

"I'll watch the men behind us." Sari said. "I'll let you know if they begin to move toward our position. Unfortunately, I will be unable to monitor the conversation of the men outside the business that sells intoxicating fluids."

"Thanks Sari." Harper said. "Rommie can take care of monitoring the others."

Sari watched the men from the P.A.G.A.N. organization while Rommie monitored the words being spoken outside Felix Rain's tavern. Harper adjusted his gun belt, checked his guns and reloaded, checked and rechecked the explosives inside his coat's inner pockets, and waited for Rommie or Sari to inform him of some news of their pursuers, or of the new group ahead of them outside the "business that sells intoxicating fluids", as Sari had called it.

Harper didn't have to wait long.

"Harper." Rommie said. "Becca and Rhade are in that tavern and these men are waiting for them."

"I'm assuming that they're not waiting to wish them a good day." Harper said.

"Not a chance. It seems they are after "the package" Rommie said, as she looked at Sari. "For some reason they think that Becca has it."

"Do you get the feeling that nobody knows what the package really is?" Harper asked.

"That seems very probable." Rommie said. "Even Dylan didn't know what the package would be, and you only found out after you talked to Doctor Brown at the lab."

"What are we going to do?" Harper asked. "We can't just sit out here and wait for them to jump Becca and Rhade. We need to …."

"Harper." Sari said, interrupting Harper. "Our pursuers are on the move."

Harper drew his guns and prepared to do anything in his power to protect Sari and complete his mission. Rommie drew her force lance as well. There was no way she was going to let anyone hurt her Harper.

But when the pursuers neared the position where they were hiding, they walked on by.

"What are they up to?" Sari asked.

"I think I know." Harper said. "They just found something too tempting to pass up."

"You're talking about the men outside the tavern?" Rommie asked.

"I'll bet if you scanned them, you would find out that all of them are genetically altered in one way or another." Harper said. "If what I think is about to happen, happens, we should be able to get Rhade and Becca out of there and safely back to the Maru."


	12. Chapter 11

Becca, Rhade, and Felix immediately noticed that their situation had changed. A group of unknown men had arrived outside and the moment they did a fierce battle began.

Rhade checked the back exit and discovered that the men waiting there were gone. They had apparently been distracted by the sound of fighting in the front of the building.

"It's clear!" Rhade shouted, as he urged Becca to follow him. "Let's go!"

"What about Felix?" Becca asked.

"He'll be fine. It's us they're after, although I have no idea why. Everyone we meet generally loves us."

Felix, however objected to being left behind.

"If you think I'm going to stay here while you and Becky go out there amongst all that fighting, you're crazier than a blue-bellied luna bird. She's the closest thing to family that I have left, and I don't desert family." Felix then grabbed a rather large and menacing looking gun from behind the bar and headed toward the rear exit.

"Very well then." Rhade said, as he drew his weapon from it's holster. "Let's get out of here and back to the Maru."

Rhade was first out the door, followed by Felix. Becca exited last holding her gauss gun in one hand and her box of chocolate tightly in the other.

They hadn't even made it out of the back alley, when they were cut off by Fletcher's men.

"Just give us the package and nobody will get hurt!" Krandal said.

If Dylan had been there, it would have been at this point that he would have tried to talk with their new found enemies and attempt a nonviolent way to solve whatever misunderstanding that had arisen, but Dylan wasn't there. Instead, Rhade looked at Becca and knew right away that she had no intention of giving up her chocolate. He found it hard to believe that people would go to such extremes just for a box of sweets. Perhaps chocolate was harder to come by than what he had thought. He wondered _"Is it possible that chocolate has replaced illegal drugs in this sector of the galaxy? Chocolate smuggling, instead of drug smuggling?" _

Rhade fired his gun and Krandal fell dead on the ground. Felix and Becca also began firing as they dove for cover.

They were holding there own, but Becca knew that if their attackers decided to rush them they were in trouble. They were in a dead end alley and now they couldn't even make it back inside the tavern without getting shot. To make matters worse they were beginning to run low on ammo.

"Rhade!" Becca shouted.

"What?" Rhade replied, as he fired his gauss gun rapidly at his foes, causing several of them to fall to the ground either dead or in great pain.. "I'm a bit busy at the moment!"

"What's the plan on getting out of here?" Becca asked.

"You're the First Officer." Rhade said. "I was waiting for you to tell me!"

"Oh great! NOW you care about rank!" Becca exclaimed. Then she noticed one of their adversaries climbing up a ladder, on the side of the building, in an attempt to get a better shot at her and her friends. She took aim, pulled the trigger, and the man fell with a shout down to the ground.

Apparently some of Fletcher's men had come into the bar and found the rear exit. Unfortunately for them, the moment they stepped outside Felix opened fire on them. (**_THUDDA THUDDA THUDDA_**)

"I haven't had this much fun since I helped your dad free slaves from Earth!" Felix shouted. "Those were the days!"

"What!" Becca asked. "I didn't know dad ever freed slaves!" (**_ZAP! POW! ZAP_**!)

"I'll tell you later Becky! There's probably a lot your dad never told you."

That was probably true. Before her dad got hooked on Flash, Becca was too young to understand things like slavery, and by the time she was old enough to understand such things, her dad was too Flash fried to talk about anything except for where and when he could get more Flash.

"Rhade!" Becca shouted. "How much ammo you got left?"

"I'm almost out!" "Rhade replied. "How about you?"

"Same here!" Becca said. "Ole Man! How's your ammo holding out?"

"This is my last clip Kiddo." Felix said. "I'm sorry Becky, but it isn't looking good for us. It's been a pleasure to fight along side of a Valentine again. Your dad would have been proud."

"We're not dead yet." Becca said. Becca laid down her gun and a moment later raised the box of chocolates high into the air. "Rhade! Felix! Hold your fire!"

Fletcher's men also stopped shooting when they saw Becca holding "the package". They were afraid of damaging it and angering Mr. Fletcher.

"So, you finally decide to give us what we want?" Fletcher's goon named Rondal asked.

"Are you in charge?" Becca asked.

"I am, since your friend killed my colleague. My name's Rondal."

"You promise to let us go and you can have the package!" Becca said.

"Sounds like a good deal." Rondal said. "Bring me the package."

Becca walked out to meet him holding the package high in the air with both of her hands.

Behind the shipping crate that she had been using for cover, lay nearly four dozen pieces of chocolate scattered on the ground.


	13. Chapter 12

Harper realized that getting his friends back to the Maru safely would be harder than he had hoped, when he heard the sound of fighting coming from the back alley behind the tavern. He asked Rommie to stay and protect Sari, but Rommie refused to let him go by himself.

"Rommie." Harper said. "I know, that us being your crew, you feel responsible for us, but Sari is the reason I'm here. If something happens to her or if some of those goons get their hands on her, all of this will have been for nothing."

"I know you're good at what you do Harper." Rommie said. "But there's too many of them, even you have to admit that.

"There's no reason for you to worry about me." Sari said. "I have been trained and programmed in the arts of Kung Fu, Karate, Jujitsu, Kalanthra defense, and Ninjitsu, just to name a few. There is also no weapon made that I haven't mastered. Since there is strength in numbers, I suggest that we all three go and help your friends."

"She has a point Harper." Rommie said. "Also, while we stand here discussing what to do, Becca and Rhade are more than likely running low on ammo."

"I hadn't even thought of that!" Harper said. "Rommie, how long will it take you to run to the Maru and bring back some extra fire power and ammo?"

"Faster than you can drink a Sparky Cola." Rommie said.

"Good. You do that. When you get back, meet me and Sari down there near the alley, behind that large waste disposal unit."

"You two better hurry," Rommie said, "Or I'll be there before you." When Rommie finished talking she took off like a flash.

"She is fast." Sari commented, as she watched Rommie plow through several armed thugs that were unfortunate enough to be in her way.

"Yeah." Harper said. "When I began work on her, I never dreamed that she would turn out as perfect as she is."

"You created Rommie?" Sari asked. "You must be a great scientist like Doctor Brown."

"Well,…" Harper said. "I don't like to brag,…. What am I saying? I love to brag! But right now I don't have the time. We need to get to the spot I told Rommie to meet us or she's going to tease me about beating us there."

Harper and Sari ran all the way and arrived at the rendezvous point mere seconds before Rommie arrived.

"What (pant) took you (pant) so long?" Harper asked, out of breath from running.

"I contacted Andromeda before leaving the Maru and informed her of our progress and situation. She said she'd relay the information to Dylan. You seem somewhat winded Harper."

"I'm ok." Harper said, trying to control his breathing. "You know you take my breath away whenever I'm near you."

"Behave yourself Harper." Rommie said, with a mock glare. "We have work to do."

"You're so right Rom Doll. There's a time and place for everything, and right now is the time to help Becca and Rhade. After that maybe you could find the time to meet me at my place to help me with my,… uh, breathing."

"In your dreams Harper." Rommie said as she began to walk into the alley, followed closely by Harper and Sari.

"Every night." Harper replied.

Harper, Rommie, and Sari noticed three guards a short distance into the alley. Without a sound, three Uber bodies soon lay dead on the ground.

Rommie knew that Dylan would have insisted that they use non lethal force, but they didn't have the time to deal with prisoners, nor could they risk their enemy coming to and once again becoming a threat. She was pleased with the skill in which Sari dispatched her target. One thing still bothered Rommie about Sari, however, and that was her likeness. Why did she look the way she did? "_It could be just a coincidence_." Rommie thought. "_But the odds of an AI randomly choosing that face, hair, eye color, and body frame are 15,901,847,006,000,545.01 to 1 against."_

With the three guards out of the way, Harper and the two beautiful, yet deadly ladies, drew near enough to see Becca approaching what appeared to be the leader of the mob. They noticed that Becca was holding a box high above her head.

"They think that's the package." Harper said.

"Yeah." Rommie said. "But we know it's not, and soon they will too."

"Rommie can you scan the box to see what is inside" Harper asked.

"My scanning abilities, when not aboard Andromeda, are somewhat limited but I should be able to determine the contents."

"I'm detecting residual traces of sugar, cocoa, and corn syrup."

"Chocolate?" Harper asked, almost laughing. "They're lucky Becca hasn't killed them all for trying to take her chocolate."

"Harper." Rommie said. "There's something else inside the box."

"What is it?"

"Becca's gauss gun, but she only has one shot left."

"According to my scans," Sari said. "The other two friends are also very low on ammunition."

"It's a good thing you brought the goodies from the Maru Rommie." Harper said. "They're definitely in need of more fire power. Sari can you make your way without being seen over to Rhade?"

"I should have no problem in doing so Harper." Sari said. "The rooftops appear to be unoccupied and will provide an adequate means to my objective."

"Good. Take several force lances, Gauss guns, and plenty of ammo with you. Tell Rhade to be ready to act as soon as Becca is out of harm's way."

"I'm on my way." Sari said, after gathering enough artillery for herself, Rhade and Felix.

After Sari reached the top of the building Harper turned to Rommie.  
"Rom Doll it's going to be up to you to get Becca to safety. I'm going to create a distraction. You'll only have seconds to grab Becca and get her behind some cover."

"Don't worry Harper." Rommie said. "She'll be ok."

"Rommie I'm not just worried about Becca." Harper said.

"I had no idea you cared so much for Rhade." Rommie said.

"You know what I mean. Take care of yourself out there, and don't even think about doing anything noble like sacrificing yourself for the good of the crew. You and Becca mean the world to me Rommie." Harper wanted to say more but even he didn't truly know what his feelings were toward Rommie. Perhaps when everyone was safely back on Andromeda he could talk to her about it.

Rommie just ruffled Harper's hair and said, "Don't worry Harper." She then walked away, getting in position to rescue Becca. "You mean a lot to me too Harper." She said, too quietly for Harper to hear. 


	14. Chapter 13

Harper could see Sari walking on the roof of the building, as she quickly made her way to Rhade and Felix.  
When Harper saw that she was right above Rhade, Harper stepped out, unnoticed by Rondal and his men, but in plain sight to Becca.  
_"What in all the worlds does he think he's doing?"_ Becca thought to herself. Then without turning her head, Becca noticed another figure much nearer to her but still out of the bad guy's range of vision, at least as long as they stayed focused on Becca. Becca wondered what Rommie was doing on the planet. Even if Harper had found out that she and Rhade were in trouble and contacted Andromeda, Rommie couldn't have gotten here that fast. _"Oh well." _Becca thought. _"Dad always said "When your in trouble, don't be questioning why or how someone has come to your rescue, just be thankful that they come."_

Harper held up the extra ammo for Becca to see and then held up three fingers. Harper then pointed to himself, Rommie, and then in the direction of Rhade and Felix. Becca understood. There apparently was a another person with Rommie and Harper over near Rhade's position. _"Ammo."_ Becca thought. _"Shorty brought ammo. We're still greatly outnumbered, but we'll give these jerks a fight that the survivors won't soon forget."_

Rhade was kneeling behind a discarded shipping crate, with all of his senses focused on Becca and her surroundings. He never heard the footsteps of someone approaching him from behind. The first clue he had that someone was behind him was a voice whispering in his ear.

"WHATT!" Rhade shouted as he turned around and attempted to shoot what he assumed was a new threat. Instead, Sari quickly, easily, and very quietly disarmed him of his weapon and placed her hand over Rhade's mouth to quiet him. His shout apparently went unnoticed by Rondal and his men, either that or they just thought he was shocked that Becca was surrendering.

"My name is Sari, and I'm here to help." She said, as she handed him the force lances and the much needed ammunition. "I'm a friend of Harper's. He's on the other side, behind the bad men. He asked me to tell you to be ready to act as soon as Becca was out of danger."

"I'd like to know how he plans on getting Becca safely out of the way." Rhade said.

"He has another friend named Rommie helping him." Sari replied.

"Rommie?" Rhade asked. "What's she doing here?"

"Helping." Sari replied. "Now, be ready. It shouldn't be long now."

Rhade looked past Becca and the evil horde of brutes and sure enough there stood Harper, spiky hair blowing in the wind, but Rhade noticed something different about the little engineer. His stance was different, his eyes had the look of a killer, and even at this distance Rhade could smell the scent of blood, not fresh blood from those that he and the others had shot here in the alley, but old, dry, stale blood. _"What have you been up to Harper?"_ Rhade thought to himself.

While Rhade watched and waited to act, Sari armed Felix with a force lance as well as a couple gauss guns.  
"I'm sorry I don't have any ammunition for your weapon sir." Sari said.

"That's quite alright Miss." Felix said. "These will do just fine, and you can forget that "sir" business, the name's Felix."

"I'm glad you decided to come to your senses." Rondal said. "Now give me the package."

Becca lowered the package and extended it toward Rondal, but at the last moment she quickly pulled her gauss gun out of the box and with her last round shot him between the eyes. Almost at the same instant, Rommie ran faster than any organic being possibly could to Becca, and grabbed her, pulling her to cover. Rommie's movements were nothing more than a blur to those watching.

As soon as Becca was out of the way Rhade, Felix and Sari began firing. Getting low on firepower themselves, Rondal's men began backing out of the alley, only to find Harper blocking their exit. Using a waste bin for cover, and with two gauss guns in his hands, he opened fire.

"Thanks Rommie." Becca said, as she loaded her gun. "You saved our butts."

"Were not safe yet Becca." Rommie said. "Even if we defeat this group, there's still more of them in the front of the building, plus the P.A.G.A.N soldiers."

"Pagan?" Becca asked.

"No time to explain right now Becca. I think it would be better if I let Harper explain."

"What's Harper got to do with it?" Becca asked as she began firing. "And why do these creeps want my chocolate?"

Rommie couldn't help but laugh at Becca's last question.

"What's so funny?" Becca Asked.

"It seems that they were under the impression that you possessed a package that their superior ordered them to obtain."

"Why doesn't he buy his own chocolate!" Becca asked.

"He doesn't want chocolate Becca." Rommie said. "He wants something totally different."  
As Rommie and Becca fired their weapons at the retreating enemy, Sari advanced toward their position, followed by Rhade and Felix. "He wants,… her." Rommie said, pointing at Sari.

Becca looked at Sari and then with a very confused expression turned back toward Rommie. "…But, she couldn't have fit in my chocolate box."


	15. Chapter 14

Rommie began to say something back to Becca, but was distracted when she saw Harper fiercely battling what was left of the enemy. They apparently had run out of ammo and had resorted to fighting hand to hand.

Harper had run out of ammo at almost the same time as his adversaries. All he had was two large knives, but it seemed that with every thrust or swing he made, another body would fall to the ground. Becca had stopped shooting. She was too stunned by what she was seeing to react. She couldn't believe what she was seeing. Harper couldn't do that. He just couldn't. Harper was her little brother that she had to protect. But the fact was, that her eyes were seeing a very different Harper than the one that she knew.

Rhade, Felix, and Sari made their way to Rommie and Becca's position. Rather than fire and risk hitting Harper, they decided to go hand-to-hand. That didn't however mean weaponless, for Rommie extended a force lance, then tossed her spare to Becca. Rhade had a lance that Sari had provided him with earlier, while Felix drew a very large military knife from his belt. Sari, however, didn't have a weapon.  
She didn't need one.

Harper freed one of his knives from another victim and prepared for another assault. A very large man rushed him with a knife. Harper quickly grabbed the man's hand and gave it a quick and hard twist till he heard the satisfying snap of bones breaking. Harper then thrust the newly acquired knife deep inside his attacker's chest, before he let him drop to the ground.

His friends joined him and the scene was brutal.  
Becca, using her force lance, hit a man in the abdomen causing him to double over. She then brought the lance up with great force, impacting with his skull, restoring him to an upright position.  
"Maybe next time you'll know not to mess with a woman's chocolate." Becca said giving him one final blow, causing him to fall to the ground.

Rhade was pleasantly surprised at the fighting skill that Felix possessed. For a man old enough to be Becca's father he still had a lot of fight in him. Felix turned to Rhade after dispatching another attacker and saw the questioning look on Rhade's face.  
"I wasn't always a bar tender Lad." Felix said, and continued fighting.

"That is plain to see." Rhade said to himself.

Rommie and Sari fought together as a team as if they had done so for years. Each one anticipated the other's actions and moved to assist. Their movements were graceful and it would have almost looked like a dance if it were not for the bodies that began to pile up around them.

Harper's heart was beating so fast and hard, he was sure that Rhade could probably hear it. He looked around but it seemed that all threats had been dealt with. Harper began to walk toward his friends, but before he made it half way, he heard a sound behind him. One of the soldiers lying on the ground apparently wasn't dead. He had been laying there waiting for his chance. Harper had his back to him as the Uber began to raise his gun to shoot.

"This is going to hurt you more than it does me Kludge." He thought as he prepared to shoot.  
He was wrong, for in a blink of an eye Harper twisted around and threw his knife which expertly hit it's mark between the Uber's eyes.

Harper stood there without moving, staring at the dead bodies that lay all around him.  
"Why?" Harper asked quietly. "Why am I doing this again?  
…I never should have come here.  
….I never should have accepted this mission."

"Wait a minute!" Becca shouted. "What mission? And since when can you fight like this?"

Harper turned to face Becca. He never intended to lie to her about what he had done all those years ago, but at the time, he knew she wouldn't understand. As time passed and he left P.A.G.A.N., it was easier just to pretend that portion of his life never happened. He knew he would have to tell her now, but he was afraid. He didn't know what he would do if he ever lost Becca as a friend. She had been there for him and stood up for him many times over the years. Even when Dylan was raging mad at him for not acting like a High Guard officer at some fancy banquet, Becca had defended him. "_What will she think of me now_?" Harper thought.


	16. Chapter 15

"Becca." Rommie said. "We really don't have time for this right now. We need to get back to the Maru as soon as possible. There's also another group that's been following Harper that would like very much to get their hands on Sari."

Normally Harper would've had an uncouth remark on how he would like get his hands on a girl like Sari, but this wasn't the time. He was just thankful that Rommie had bought him a little time to figure out how to explain things to Becca.

"Alright, but as soon as we're on the Maru and on our way back to Andromeda," Becca said. "You and Harper are going to tell me what's been going on."

In front of the tavern, the P.A.G.A.N. members were too busy fighting Fletcher's men to notice as Harper and his friends sneaked by on their way to the space port.

Becca noticed that Felix was beginning to lag behind.

"Hey Old Man!" Becca said. "Getting too old to keep up?

"I'm not gonna make it Becky." Felix said.

"What are you talking about? Of course you'll make it. We're almost to the Maru, and…" Becca trailed off as she noticed for the first time a growing wet spot on Felix's shirt. "Rommie!" Becca shouted as Felix's body collapsed. Becca caught him and gently lowered him to the ground. "I'm not gonna let you die."

Rommie knelt down and examined the wound.

"It was good to see you again Becca." He said. "But an old soldier knows when his time is up. Isn't that right miss?"

Rommie looked at Felix and then at Becca. "I'm sorry Becca, but there's nothing I can do. He's lost way too much blood."

"We can get him to Andromeda!" Becca shouted. "Trance can heal him! I know she can!"

Rommie placed a hand on Becca's shoulder. "I'm sorry Becca, but there's no time."

"Becca." Felix said. "Before,… I die, there's something I have to tell you, something that you should have been told years ago."

"It's ok." Becca said. "Save your strength. You can tell me later. You'll be fine. You'll see."

If Felix heard her protest, he didn't acknowledge it. "Before you were Born, your mother, father, Uncle Sid, and I were best of friends. We were more than a crew we were family. Your mother was a very lovely woman with a very kind soul. It was her that convinced us to help the slaves on Earth.

We landed the Maru at the Boston Space Port and met Brian the leader of the Resistance. He had a dozen refuges for us to transport to a safe planet where they could rebuild there lives. He traveled with us to make sure that we didn't mistreat or resell the refuges. After successfully transporting that first bunch of refugees, we began doing it on a regular basis. Once every two weeks we would meet with the Resistance leader and he would accompany us as we transported another group of refugees to their new home.

Your mother and Brian soon became good friends. Actually,… they became more than friends. Your dad found out about their affair and dropped Brian off on Earth. That brought a close to our good deeds for the unfortunate people of Earth."

I don't understand." Becca said. "Why are you telling me this. I already know that my mom was a worthless mother. She left me Rafe and dad all alone when we needed her the most."

"Becky," Felix said. "Shortly after we left Brian on Earth, your mother discovered that she was pregnant. Brian was the father. He's your father."

"No. There's no way!" Becca shouted. "I,… I know who my father is! Why are you saying this?"

"Because it's the truth Becky."

"Stop calling me that!"

"One good thing I can say about Ignatius Valentine is that he couldn't have loved you or treated you any better if you had been his own flesh and blood.

It was several years after I left the Maru that I heard that your mother had left. I sort of think that, although Ignatius forgave her, the guilt of what she done drove her away."

"What was his name?" Becca asked.

"Who?"

"The man from Earth,…Brian. What was his full name?"

"Strange thing that. It was the same as you friend's over there... Harper.  
Brian Harper,…….."


	17. Chapter 16

Beka didn't know what to say. The days events had given her several questions for her long time friend and engineer, and now it seemed that a whole new barrage of queries were swimming around in her mind . Did Seamus know anyone in Boston by the name of Bryan Harper, and if so, was Harper related to him in any way? What if Bryan Harper was _his_ dad too?

But the question that gnawed at her the most, no matter how much she tried to suppress it was, Did Harper know?

As Beka sat there holding Felix, she noticed her empty candy box lying next to him which she had left back in the alley.

Felix saw Beka looking at the box.

"I, (cough!) couldn't just leave them there." He said, but it was getting more and more difficult for him to speak. It seemed as if every word he spoke was weaker than the previous one. "I never was one to let things go to waste."

Beka opened the lid and was shocked to find the box once again filled with chocolate.

"Felix,…" Beka said "You didn't have to do this. You could've got yourself shot,…" Beka trailed off and Felix weakly nodded.

"You got yourself shot while getting these?"

"I know,… it was a fool thing for me to do, but, (cough!) I wanted to do it for you. I know, (cough!) how you like your chocolate, and besides, you're the closest thing I've got to family and I wanted you to be happy. You deserve some happiness in this crazy universe you live in Becky."

"So do you Ole Man." Beka replied. "So do you."

"Take care of yourself Becky, and take care of your, (cough! COUGH!!) family and friends, cause,…there's nothing in this Divine forsaken universe more precious than family."

Beka hugged Felix as tears rolled freely down her cheeks.

"I'll, (sniff) never forget you Old Man."

Beka held him in her arms as Felix breathed his last breaths. Beka wanted to scream. Why was it that everybody that she had ever cared about, always had to leave her?

------------------------------------------------------

-------------------------------------------------------

Rommie had a difficult time convincing Beka to release Felix.

"Beka, we have to go now." Rommie said. "We need to catch up with the others and get to the Maru."

"I won't leave him here Rommie." Beka replied.

"We don't have to." Rommie said. "I'll carry him, but we need to go now before we're spotted by our friends from earlier."

Having finally convinced Beka to let go, Rommie lifted up Felix's body and carried him as they ran toward the Maru.

When they reached the Maru, they were shocked at what they saw.


	18. Chapter 17

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Earlier, on board Andromeda Dylan had decided to go down to the planet and help his crew.

"Trance. You stay here and keep an eye on things. Andromeda, run a scan of that space station. For a casino, they don't seem to have much traffic coming or going."

"Commencing scan." Andromeda replied.

"Be careful Dylan." Trance said.

"Don't worry Trance. I'll be fine and I'll bring Harper and the others safely home."

Dylan headed for the nearest docking bay and was soon on his way to the planet's surface in a slip fighter.

"Trance." Andromeda said.

"Yes Andromeda."

"The station is powering up weapons. They're locking on Dylan."

"Andromeda open a com line to the station." Trance said.

"Com line open."

"Orbiting station, you are ordered to power down your weapons or we will be forced to destroy you."

"Incoming message." Andromeda announced.

"My name is Captain Fletcher. We apologize for this situation. It seems that there has been a malfunction in our defense systems. They have activated and locked on automatically when they detected the smaller vessel leave your ship. We are unable to disengage."

"Do you expect us to believe that?" Trance asked.

"Whether you believe it or not, that is what happened, and since we do not have control over our weapon systems, you would be firing on an unarmed station." Fletcher then cut the com link.

"Andromeda, How powerful is the station's weapons?"

"The sum of their defenses seem to be made up of medium grade lasers and four large caliber projectile cannons. Not a match for me, but they can easily destroy Dylan's slip fighter."

"Then move us between the station and Dylan. You and I both know that Fletcher is lying, but we still can't afford to fire on the station."

Andromeda reluctantly agreed. "I would much rather see Fletcher and his ill defended station blown to atoms, but you are correct. We're nearly in position…. Wait!! They're firing!!"

"NOOOO!!!!" Trance screamed.

Several laser blasts hit the slip fighter, knocking out several systems including weapons and communications. Dylan did still have navigational control, although it was somewhat sluggish.

"Dylan's still alive Trance." Andromeda informed her. "And I am now in position to block any further attacks on his slip fighter…. Incoming message from the station."

"We are deeply sorry for this horrible accident." Fletcher said, followed by a wide toothy grin. "But you will be happy to know that the malfunction has been repaired. To make up for any inconvenience I would like to offer a free visit to my casino and 300 credits per crewmember." Fletcher once again cut the com link.

"What nerve!" Trance said. "He thinks he can fire at Dylan and then make it all right with a handful of credits!"

"I'd like to tell him where he could put his credits." Andromeda said.

"If Harper were here," Trance said. "_He'd_ tell Fletcher what he could do with his stupid credits."

ooooooooooooooooooooooo oooooooooooooooo ooooooooooooooooooooo oooooooooooooo

oooooooooooooooooooooooooooo oooooooooooooooooooooo oooooooooooooooooooooo

The slip fighter's controls were getting worse. Dylan knew a perfect landing wouldn't be possible, and as he entered the atmosphere he began to realize that _any_ landing might be impossible. The fighter began rocking uncontrollably as pieces began breaking off. Just as he thought things couldn't get any worse, the spaceport defenses began firing on him.

"It's never easy." He mumbled. "Why isn't it EVER EASY!?"

Knowing that the slip fighter was a goner, and himself as well if he stayed, Dylan ejected.

Dylan no sooner cleared the slip fighter, when it exploded in a brilliant flash of fire and debris.

Unfortunately for Dylan, as soon as he touched down, he found himself surrounded by port authorities, who happened to all be loyal followers of Captain Fletcher.

"Hello gentlemen." Dylan said. "Would one of you be so kind as to direct me to the local parachutist club. I'm the guest speaker and I'm running a bit late."

"Silence!" Dylan heard one of them shout, before his world was engulfed in darkness.

Meanwhile Harper, Rhade, and Sari reached the Maru. The hatch opened and Sari entered, but before Harper and Rhade could follow, a laser blast hit the door panel causing the hatch to close.

They drew their guns and quickly spun around, only to find Dylan being held at gun point. It was at this point that Harper saw Beka and Rommie nearing the Maru unseen by Fletcher's men.

Harper and Rhade both noticed the motionless body of Felix being carried by Rommie.

The man holding the gun at Dylan's head spoke up. "Give us what we want and we'll let you all leave. Refuse,… and Captain Hunt will be the first to die!"


	19. Chapter 18

Dylan had just regained consciousness in time to hear the demand made by his captor, which happened to be a very large Nietzschean by the name of Frack, who happened to be holding a rather nasty looking gun a bit too close, in Dylan's opinion, to Dylan's right eye.

"Don't do it Harper." Dylan said. "Forget about me and finish the mission."

"Shut up!" Frack shouted, as he quickly rotated his weapon, hitting Dylan in the head with the butt of it. The impact of the weapon knocked him to the ground but he remained conscious. In one fluid motion Dylan was once again staring at the, all too close, business end of Frack's gauss rifle.

"Harper, huh? So,…" Frack said, as he studied Harper's physical form. "…You're Seamus Harper, known to some as "The Purifier"? I always imagined you to be much,….larger?

How many of my brother Nietzscheans did you kill? Three hundred in the explosion on Galta 5, hundreds on Earth, 73 in the mining disaster on Octalion, and numerous Nietzschean politicians and military leaders, all killed masterfully, as only a skilled assassin would."

"I've killed more than that." Harper said. "Many more."

At first Harper was embarrassed that this Uber was revealing things about his past, things that he knew he should have told his friends long ago but was too ashamed to do it. But a change came over Harper. It was a change that had begun taking place the moment he started this mission, and begun killing again. It was this change that Trance was worried about happening.

He wasn't ashamed any more. Instead he was proud. He was an assassin, and he was good at it, even this Uber had to admit that he was skilled.

"Within seconds," Harper said, speaking of the Battle of the Witch Head Nebula, "I killed more than 100,000 Nietzscheans. and **_I NEVER. EVEN. BROKE. A SWEAT! _**

Sure, I let Dylan think that the final decision was his," Harper continued, "but it really wasn't. One way or the other, my bomb would be launched causing the nebula to erupt into the largest, brightest, and deadliest explosion in existence, short of a nova bomb. My only regret is that it didn't kill the remaining 500 ships."

Frack had heard stories of the Battle of the Witch Head Nebula, and he also knew the legend of how the Nietzscheans arrived with overwhelming numbers, and how the Angel of Death appeared, summoning forth the fires of hell.

"You claim to be the Angel of Death that destroyed one thousand Nietzschean ships at the Battle of Witch Head!?"

"I do, and I am." Harper said. "I could explain it all to you about how we accidentally ended up three hundred years in the past right before the battle, but we really don't have time for that do we?"

"No. We do not." Frack said, still not convinced that Harper could have possibly done what he said. "We have more pressing matters to deal with. If you would be so kind as to hand over the package, I'll release Captain Hunt and allow you all to return to your ship."

"I'm sorry." Harper said. "But that arrangement doesn't work for me. You see, you made a slight miscalculation in your plan when you took Dylan. Holding a gun to his head and threatening to kill him doesn't influence me to comply to your demands one bit. Heck, I'd have killed him myself ages ago If I thought I could've gotten away with it. What little respect I did have for him, I lost when he turned his back on Earth."

"Harper." Dylan said. "I explained why,…

Dylan was cut off as a blast from Harper's gauss gun suddenly hit him in the chest.


	20. Chapter 19

Frack hadn't anticipated Harper shooting his own captain. The act had very much taken him by surprise.

Beka couldn't believe what she was seeing. Everything that had happened that day was like some bad dream, and Harper shooting Dylan was just so,… unbelievable.

Almost immediately after Dylan got shot, Frack let go of him and Dylan fell to the ground. Harper's next shot struck Dylan's captor right between the eyes. Rhade, Rommie, and Beka quickly took out the rest of the Nietzscheans and then Beka and Rhade pointed their guns at Harper.

"Have you went totally nuts?!" Beka shouted at Harper.

Harper ignored her and knelt down on the ground next to Dylan, who was barely conscious.

"I'm sorry boss." Harper said to Dylan. "But it was the only thing I could think of."

"I'm assuming you missed any vital organs." Dylan said weakly.

"Of course I did." Harper said. "I am a genius."

"So you didn't intend to kill the captain." Rhade said.

"Of course not." Harper said. "But if we don't get him on the Maru and back to Andromeda, there is a chance he could bleed to death, so how about you helping me get him aboard."

Rhade helped Harper with Dylan, while Beka followed Rommie aboard the Maru.

Inside the Maru Rommie laid Felix's body on one of the bunks, then she joined Beka, who was already busy piloting the Maru back to Andromeda.

"How are you doing Beka?" Rommie asked.

"It's a short trip back to Andromeda." Beka said. "No problems."

"That's not what I'm talking about and you know it."

Beka engaged autopilot and turned around to face Rommie.

"I'm trying not to think about it too much." Beka said. "Everything that happened today,… Everything I learned,… It's a bit too much for my brain to process."

"I understand Beka. I just hope you can try understand why Harper did what he did in the past."

"I can't believe you're defending him!" Beka said. "He just shot Dylan! Your captain! Come to think of it, the moment he did it, you didn't even flinch. I would think you would be more upset than me at Harper. So what gives? Why didn't you react when Harper shot Dylan?"

"When we discovered that Dylan had been taken captive and was being held at gun point, I began running possible scenarios, trying to determine the most likely method of us all getting off the planet alive. To be perfectly honest I was surprised by Harper's actions, but it wasn't because I thought he was do something wrong. It was because it was exactly what a trained High Guard officer would have done in that same situation."

Back aboard Andromeda, Dylan was lying on a bed in medical, when he woke up to see a familiar but unexpected face.

Trance and Sari had been taking turns tending to Dylan's injuries. It seemed that the wound that Dylan received from Harper's gun was the least of his worries. He had apparently been severely beaten before Frack had met them at the Maru holding a gun on Dylan.

Sari had just relieved Trance, allowing her to tend to her plants and possibly get some rest, if she rested. Sari looked at Dylan as he slept and couldn't help feel as if she knew this man from somewhere, but no matter how hard she tried she couldn't find any reference to a Dylan Hunt in her memory.

Sari heard him stirring and quietly neared his bed. Dylan opened his eyes and looked at her for the first time.

"Sara? It can't be. How did you get here?"


	21. Chapter 20

As soon as the Maru was back aboard Andromeda, Harper joined everyone as they rushed Dylan to Medical. There they waited, while Trance examined Dylan, aided by Sari.

Until today Harper had never considered shooting Dylan under any circumstance (_not seriously at least_). He took this mission hoping to gain some respect from his captain and possibly Andromeda, but somehow he didn't think shooting Dylan would win him any medals or high praise from either of them. It would be more likely for them to leave him on some desolate rock.

Thinking back on everything that he had done to accomplish his mission, Harper began to realize that things wouldn't be the same again… He wouldn't be the same again.

Not only did he revert back into his old life of killing, but those that he considered family witnessed it. He couldn't bear to think what they would think of him now, especially Beka.

Trance interrupted Harper's thoughts to inform everyone of Dylan's condition.

"He's going to be fine." She said. "But it's going to take some time."

As soon as Trance confirmed that Dylan would live, Harper slipped away, unnoticed by the others, and locked himself in his quarters.

"Harper messed him up pretty good when he shot him huh?" Rhade asked.

"Harper shot Dylan!?" Trance asked, this information being new to her.

Rommie explained to Trance what happened down on the planet and the events leading up to Harper shooting Dylan.

"I see." Trance said. "And to answer your question Rhade, No. Harper didn't mess Dylan up. In fact I'm more concerned with Dylan's other injuries."

"Other injuries?" Beka asked. "I thought he was just shot."

"Trance is correct. Dylan suffered only minor bleeding from the gun wound." Sari said. "But according to our tests, the captain has been severely beaten and as a result has been afflicted with serious internal injuries."

"How serious?" Rommie asked.

"Life threatening." Trance replied. "If you had been a few minutes later getting him back to Andromeda,… he would've died."

"Hear that Harper?" Beka asked. "You actually saved Dylan by shooting him!…. Hey! Where is Harper?"

In his quarters, Harper sat on his bed, drinking a can of Sparky Cola, as he pondered his situation.

"Harper." Andromeda's hologram said, as she appeared in front of him.

Startled by her sudden appearance, Harper fell off his bed and spilled his Sparky on the pillow.

"Darn it!" Harper exclaimed. "That was my last can. Do you have to pop in like that? Besides, I kind of want to be alone for a while if you don't care."

"That's the problem Harper." Andromeda said. "I do care, and I'm not going to let you sulk around in here feeling sorry for yourself for no good reason."

"No good reason!?" Harper shouted. "I shot Dylan! I shot _your_ captain! I killed an innumerable amount of people down on that planet, and last but definitely not least, I've been lying to Beka all these years about my past and what I'm truly capable of."

"Harper," Andromeda said. "We all have a dark side. Some are just better able to hide it than others. Do you honestly think that Dylan never had to do something during a mission that he regretted later. Killing is always a possible and probable action for a soldier of the High Guard."

"It's not the same Rommie. This latest mission might come under that category, but what I did years ago didn't happen during war time, neither was it part of some military mission. I assassinated people, sometimes unarmed people, because I hated what they did to my planet, my town, and,… my family. I hated all Ubers, and a part of me still does.

When Trance joined the Maru, something inside me changed. Everyone and everything was sweet and beautiful in her eyes. She always tried to see the best in people. Every time I heard her talk about how precious all life was, I could feel an awful empty feeling in my gut. I felt guilty for what I was doing. That's when I realized that no matter how many Ubers or Magog I killed, it would never be enough to take away my pain. So I stopped, and I promised myself to never again be that person again.

So much for promises."

"Harper," Andromeda said. "My avatar already informed me of everything that happened on the planet. What you did down there, had to be done. The fact that you used skills and abilities that you used in your past, doesn't make you a bad person. It's your bad manners and never-ending sexual innuendos that do that." She added with a grin.

"Ha Ha. Very funny."

"But seriously Harper,… OK, you had to kill to complete your mission. You shouldn't feel ashamed for being good at it."

"You've got it all wrong. I'm not ashamed of the fact that I killed those men down there today…

I'm concerned with the fact that I _enjoyed_ killing them."


	22. Chapter 21

Convinced that Dylan would be fine and only needed time to heal, Rommie decided to give Sari the grand tour.

"…and last but not least, the command deck." Rommie stated as she concluded the tour.

"You are absolutely remarkable." Sari said to all three representations of Andromeda. "The word trinity comes to mind; three parts making up one whole."

"I suppose that is a fairly accurate description of our being." Andromeda said dryly.

"…But you must be quite remarkable yourself, considering what people were willing to go through to bring you here." Andromeda's hologram stated. "I understand that many people died attempting to apprehend you, although they didn't actually know it was you they were after."

"Yes." Andromeda said with a stern look. "Explain to us why your being here is worth our captain being shot, our 1st officer nearly having a mental breakdown, and our engineer seriously contemplating leaving. Tell us what makes you so special that my crew, specifically my engineer, risked their lives to bring you here, other than the fact that you resemble our captain's dead fiancé."

Oooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo

oooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo

Back in Harper's quarters Andromeda continued to try to talk Harper into staying.

"Alright." Harper said. "If, and that's a big "if", Dylan, Beka, and the others still want me to stay, I will."

"Don't worry Harper. I'm sure that nobody wants you to leave."

"I wish I could be as certain."

"You can be certain that no matter what happens," Andromeda said. "I will always be there for you Harper. You may be my engineer, but you're also my friend. If anything, you and I have more in common now than I thought before."

Andromeda's hologram closed her eyes as she processed some new data.

"Harper." Andromeda said. "Beka is on her way to your quarters. She wants to talk."

"I'm surprised she waited this long. How long do I have before she gets here?"

"Approximately five minutes." Andromeda answered.

"That should give me just enough time."

"Enough time for what Harper?"

"There's someone I need to talk to. Andromeda, could I have some privacy please?"

"Privacy mode engaged, authorization Seamus Harper, Chief Engineer."

Andromeda's hologram vanished and Harper immediately opened a communications link with another vessel. A human face appeared on the screen. It was a face from Harper's past, one that he thought he'd never see again. If all things went according to Harper's plan, he'd never have to see him again.

"Mr. Harper." The man said. "I must congratulate you for your performance today. Very well done. I do however wish that you had been working for us. You killed some of our best men down there today."

"They gave me no choice Vash." Harper said. "And if they were your best, you guys must be getting desperate."

"No need for insults." Vash said. "Not everybody can be as good as you. Why do you think we tried so hard to get you to come back?"

"That's not my life anymore."

"You can't hide what you are Harper." Vash said. "You may have had those friends of yours fooled, but we both know what you are, what we both are. I know what you're capable of, and now so do they. How long do you think it will take for them to come to the conclusion that there's no place in their new Commonwealth for someone like you. They'll kick you out without a moments hesitation."

"Perhaps." Harper agreed. He had to admit to himself that he had been thinking the very same thing just moments before talking to Andromeda, but he knew now that no matter what, Andromeda would be there for him and perhaps the others as well. "But no matter what I'm not returning to P.A.G.A.N." Harper added.

"You're a fool!" Vash exclaimed. "You know that the organization doesn't just let people leave. We'll hunt you down, and when you least expect it we will kill you."

"You've already tried that." Harper said. "But none of this is important at the moment. I contacted you because I had some information to give you."

"I'm listening." Vash said.

In the corridor Beka approached Harper's quarters. She was a jumble of mixed emotions. She felt grief for her long time family friend Felix, anger toward Harper for hiding his past, concern for Dylan as he lay in medical, and apprehension at the thought that she and Harper could possibly be more than friends.

"Could Harper really be my brother?" She asked herself aloud.

Andromeda's hologram appeared next to her.

"I could have Trance run some tests if you would like. It should only take a few moments for her to verify whether you and Harper are related or not."

"Thanks Andromeda. I think that would be a good idea."

Andromeda vanished as Beka approached Harper's door.

Beka entered as Harper was finishing his conversation with Vash.

"… It's been good talking with you Harper." Vash said. "Thank you again for the message. I do hope that you have a long life and that, for your benefit, we never meet again."

"Don't worry." Harper said. "I don't think there'll ever be a chance of that happening."

The communication ended and Beka cleared her throat.

"Who was that Harper, and what are you up to now?"


	23. Chapter 22

Harper turned around and looked at Beka.

"That was just an old acquaintance of mine Boss." Harper said. "I was just saying goodbye to my past, hopefully for the last time."

"That's good." Beka said. "Because your past is what I'm here to talk to you about."

"Alright, I'm not proud of what I did, but here's what happened," Harper said, as he started to explain about how he got mixed up with P.A.G.A.N.

Beka stopped him.

"That's not what I wanted to talk about Harper."

"But you said you wanted to talk about my past." Harper said, a bit confused. "After what you saw down on the planet I thought you'd be pretty ticked off to find out I'd been hiding this from you."

"I was. I still am somewhat, but there's something more important I need to know." Beka looked at Harper and for the first time truly studied his features.

"Why are you looking at me like that?" Harper asked, feeling more nervous now than when he thought she was mad at him.

"Down on the planet I met an old friend Harper. His name was Felix."

"He's the one that got shot?" Harper asked. Beka nodded. "I'm sorry Beka."

"It happens." Beka said. She knew if she dwelt too much thinking of Felix dying, then she wouldn't be able to finish what she came here for.

"He told me that years ago that my mother and father, uncle Sid, and himself used to help people on Earth. They used the Maru to take refugees to different planets where they could live normal lives in peace."

"That's amazing!" Harper said. "I can believe that about your dad, but _Sid_?"

"I guess people can change Harper."

Beka had no idea how much Harper hoped she was right about people being able to change.

Beka hesitated. It was time to tell Harper what Felix had told her about her real father.

"Harper, there was a man on Earth that directed and accompanied each refugee relocation. He was the leader Boston's resistance force at the time. During the various trips made he and my mother became very close,… they had an affair Harper." Tears were beginning to form in her eyes but she wiped them away and continued. "I found out that Ignatius Valentine wasn't my father."

"What!?" Harper exclaimed.

"Wait." Beka said "There's more. The man's last name that helped relocate the refugees,… was Harper."

"What!?" Harper exclaimed again.

"Harper have you ever heard of a Bryan Harper?"

"Whaaaat!?" Harper exclaimed as he fell out of his chair.

**"Battle stations! Battle stations! All hands to Battle stations****!"** Andromeda's voice echoed throughout the ship. 

On the orbiting space station/casino, people everywhere were rushing to get to their transports.

"What's going on?" Fletcher asked. "Why's everyone leaving?"

"You gave the order ten minutes ago sir for all civilians do disembark immediately." a nervous ensign replied.

"I gave no such order."

One of the other crewmen was busy at a computer terminal. "I've found something!" He said. "Ten minutes ago we received a communication which contained an embedded code. The order for the civilians to leave was in that code."

"Where did the transmission originate from?" Fletcher asked. "And what else is this virus going to do?"

"The communication originated from the P.A.G.A.N ship sir. As to what other trouble it may cause, it's hard to say."

"Then get rid of it!"

"I'll try sir , but whoever created this had to be a genius."

-------------------------------------------------------

On the P.A.G.A.N vessel, Vash finished his talk with Harper and entered the command deck.

"I've just been informed by a reliable source that the Commonwealth were unsuccessful in retrieving the package. Fletcher has it onboard his orbiting casino."

"Then we've lost it." His Second said. "There's no way we can get on and off of the station alive with the package."

"True Logan, we may have lost it, but they won't be able to use it if they're dead."

"Sir, we're no match for the station's defenses. They'll slaughter us."

"That would be true," Vash said. "If the station's defenses were still operational. Mr. Harper however informs me that he has sent them a rather nasty virus that will disrupt all operations aboard the station including all of their defenses."

"I don't understand." Logan said. "I thought Seamus Harper was working against us. Why would he help us now?"

"You don't know him like I do. Harper may not have wanted us to have the package, but he wants Fletcher and his goons to have it even less. He'd rather it be destroyed than to fall into their hands. He might not admit it, but he's still one of us. When this is all over we'll meet with Mr. Harper again and explain to him the benefits of returning to the Organization,… and the cost of rejection "

"Pilot! Take us to Fletcher's orbiting casino." Vash said. "I'm feeling lucky."


	24. Chapter 23

The call to arms had allowed Sari to exit Command without answering Andromeda's questions.  
In her own opinion, there was nothing about her that was worth so many people getting hurt.  
She decided it would be best if she just stayed out of the way for the moment, and try to figure out why the Commonwealth was so interested in her.

Instead of going to the quarters that Rommie had assigned to her, she ended up in Medical.

She sat down in a nearby chair and watched Andromeda's captain as he slept.

"I'm sorry Dylan." She said. "If it wasn't for me you wouldn't be in that med bed, Beka wouldn't be upset, and Harper wouldn't be considering leaving. It seems that I've been the cause of much trouble lately."

-------------------------------------------------------------------------------  
Rhade, Rommie, and Trance were already on the Command deck when Harper and Beka entered.

"Alright!" Beka said. "Who's attacking us now?"

"Nobody yet." Rhade replied. "There is, however, a ship advancing on Fletcher's orbiting casino."

"Sensors show that the approaching vessel has armed all weapons." Rommie said.

"They're fools." Rhade said. "They're no match for the station's defenses. They'll be slaughtered."

"I'm intercepting a communication from the advancing ship." Andromeda said. "They're hailing the orbiting station."

"Put it on the screen." Beka said. "Let's see what's going on."

"On screen." Andromeda confirmed

Vash appeared on screen and addressed Captain Fletcher.

"Mr. Fletcher," Vash said. "I am a representative of an organization dedicated to the protection and well being of humanity. You may call me Vash. You have something that doesn't belong to you and I'm not about to let you use it."

"I know what you are," Fletcher replied. "and what organization you represent, but you are a fool if you think you can board my station and steal anything from me!"

"I'm not planning on stealing anything captain. It occurs to me that you won't be able to use anything if you're dead. So if you believe in any supreme deity, I recommend that you say your prayers."

"That's very funny." Fletcher laughed. "Do I understand you correctly, that you plan on attacking my heavily armed and vastly superior station with your tiny insignificant ship? You are a fool."

"We shall see who the fool is." Vash replied. "Fire all weapons! Destroy the station!"

The communication ended.

"The approaching vessel has launched weapons at the station." Andromeda announced.

"Their actions are suicidal." Rhade said.

"It would seem that way." Rommie said. "But I'm detecting a malfunction in the stations defenses. Their weapon systems appear to have been infected by a virus."

The station was in total chaos. Fletcher had ordered defensive lasers to take out the approaching missiles only to discover that all weapon systems were offline. All of the incoming missiles impacted with the defenseless station causing massive destruction and death.

"Get those weapons back online!" Fletcher shouted, as various consoles blazed and smoke began to fill his control room.

"I'm trying."

"Then try harder!"

"Captain, considering our situation, perhaps we should consider abandoning the station. We do still have access to twenty five escape pods"

"Never!" Fletcher exclaimed. "If I die on this station, I swear that my last act will be to destroy that vessel."

"How do you propose we do that with no weapons? I tell you captain, our only hope for survival is the escape pods!"

The captain got a glimmer in his eyes.  
"You said that the escape pods our still operational?"

"Yes!" The crewman replied, in hopes that his insane captain had finally decided to take his advice and escape the doomed station.

"…And these escape pods," Fletcher continued, "can their preprogrammed course to the planet Maligna be altered?"

"Yes, but why would you want to alter them?"

"Because I plan on loading them with mines and launching them at that infernal ship!"


	25. Chapter 24

Back in Medical Sari continued to watch over Andromeda's captain, while the others were busy on Command.

Sari looked at Dylan as he slept and couldn't help feel as if she knew this man from somewhere, but no matter how hard she tried she couldn't find any reference to a Dylan Hunt in her memory. It was as if he were someone from a long forgotten dream that she was unable to remember clearly. 

Sari heard him stirring and quietly neared his bed. Dylan opened his eyes and looked at her for the first time.

"Sara!? It can't be. How did you get here?"

"Calm down Captain." Sari said. "You've been through a traumatic experience. My name is Sari. I'm a new prototype Cyborganic A.I.

Your engineer Seamus Harper brought me here from the planet Maligna. I understand it was one the objectives of the mission that you sent him on."

"I apologize for my outburst." Dylan said. "It's just that you look exactly like someone from my past."

"Yes. I was informed by members of your crew, and your ship, that I resemble your fiancé. I'm sorry if my appearance disturbs you. Maybe I should leave and let Trance know you're awake."

"That won't be necessary." Andromeda's hologram stated, after appearing on the opposite side of Dylan's med bed. "I've already informed Trance and she's on her way."

"Thank you Andromeda." Dylan said.

"You're welcome." Andromeda replied, before she vanished, leaving Dylan once again alone with Sari.

"You said that you are a Cyborganic A.I." Dylan said. "What exactly does that mean?"

"Most of my body is a standard cybernetic android, but it has been enhanced with an experimental synthetic living tissue and other organic material. The living tissue is actually bonded to all parts of my cybernetic structure. It gives me the ability to heal like an organic being, only somewhat more rapidly."

"Then you are "the package" that Harper was to retrieve?"

"That's correct."

"But you said that retrieving you was only one of Harper's objectives. I had no information about Harper having any other objectives. What were they and how did he receive them?"

"I believe Harper is taking care of the other objectives as we speak, and as to how he learned of this aspect of his mission, … Dr. Doodlewaddle, or rather, Dr. Brown gave a list of items to Harper and asked him to procure them for him when this was all over. He told Harper that he needed them to repair a machine he had been working on, but when Harper looked at the list, he knew right away that the items couldn't be used for what Dr. Brown was working on. It was nothing but a list of junk and some nonsense words. It didn't take him long to deduce that Dr. Brown had hidden a secret message in the list of junk."

"More cloak and dagger." Dylan said.

"Yes." Sari agreed. "Dr. Brown will deny it, but I think he actually likes that sort of thing."

Dylan smiled at Sari and she smiled back. 

Dylan couldn't believe how much she resembled his Sara. Everything about her reminded him of his lost fiancé, his lost love. The universe indeed had a sick sense of humor.


	26. Chapter 25

I finally have another chapter finished.  
Sorry for the long wait. I will finish this story, and I'll try to get the next chapter posted sooner. 

On Andromeda's command deck, the crew watched as the P.A.G.A.N. ship continued it's assault on Fletcher's defenseless station.

"We have to stop this." Beka said. "I know Fletcher and his goons are creeps but we can't just sit here and let that other ship destroy a defenseless casino."

"Planning on doing some gambling later?" Rhade asked.

"In this universe," Beka said, "everyday life is a gamble. I know what it's like to be under attack, on a ship that's lost all weapons and the only systems left half way working is life support. It isn't a pleasant feeling."

"So you think we should help the people that shot Dylan?" Trance asked calmly.

"I don't want to do it." Beka said, " But I think it's what Dylan would do. What do you think Rommie? Should we get involved?"

"If it were up to me," Rommie said. "I'd blow both ship and station to atoms, …but we can't. The planet Maligna is not yet a member of the Commonwealth, and while their government allows Commonwealth members to visit their world, they strictly forbid any Commonwealth involvement in any conflicts in or around their planet."

"But what about Harper's secret mission?" Beka asked. "Wasn't that getting involved?"

"What mission?" Rommie asked, playing dumb. "I have no official records of any such mission."

"No "official" records huh?" Beka said with understanding.

"Boss." Harper said. "Don't worry. Everything is taken care of."

"Harper, what have you done?"

"Just wait and watch the fireworks."

--------------------------------------------------------------------------  
--------------------------------------------------------------------------

Aboard Fletcher's station, Fletcher was anxiously awaiting news of the escape pods.

"Sir! The mines are fully loaded in all escape pods and all pod's navigational controls have been rerouted here to the command deck."

_**"WARNING SHIELDS CRITICAL"**_

"Did you disable all safety protocols?"

"Yes sir. All pods will be traveling at maximum velocity."

"Very good." Fletcher replied. "Arm all mines!"

"Mines armed sir."

The station rocked violently as another missile struck. Consoles burst into flames as crewmembers were thrown from their chairs.

_**"WARNING. LOSING ATMOSPHERIC PRESSURE ON DECKS FIVE THROUGH SEVENTEEN"**_

"Launch the pods!"

"Pods lau…"

"What are you waiting for?" Fletcher asked. "I said launch the pods!!!"

"I… I can't sir. All pod's launching capabilities have been disabled."

"WHAT!!!?" Fletcher shouted. "How did this happen?"

"It could have been that last missile, or,…"

"Or what Lieutenant?"

"More than likely it was caused by the virus."

"Incoming missiles!" Replied another crewmember.

Multiple missiles cut through the stations outer hull, exposing even more of the interior station to the vacuum of space. One missile made contact with an escape pod, causing the mines inside to detonate. This particular pod happened to be near the stations primary reactor.

_**"WARNING. CONTAINMENT FAILURE. REACTOR GOING CRITICAL IN SIXTY SECONDS"**_

"This can't be happening!" Fletcher bellowed.

"Captain!"

"WHAT!?"

"Don't ask me how, but all weapons have suddenly came online."

"Then fire fool!"

"FIRE!!!"

Back on the P.A.G.A.N. ship, the command crew watched Fletcher's orbiting casino quickly become orbiting debris.

"It's working sir." The weapons officer announced. "The virus has totally neutralized all weapons aboard the station."

"Continue firing." Vash ordered. "It's only a matter of time now."

"Sir, sensors detect that the stations reactor is about to go critical."

"Only a matter of seconds now." Vash smiled at the thought of finally being rid of Fletcher and his bio-engineered soldiers. Soon this fight would be over, a great victory for P.A.G.A.N, and to think it wouldn't have been possible without the help of Seamus Harper.

_"Harper my say he's no longer a part of P.A.G.A.N," Vash thought to himself. "but he can't change who he is. Even without being an official member, he's still doing the work of the Organization. When this battle is over, I will bring him back into the Organization. Then we will….."_

"Sir! All weapons aboard the station have just become active!"

"That's not possible!"

"They're firing!"

"Evasive maneuvers!" Vash shouted.

The ship rocked violently from the station's ferocious attack. Fletcher knew that he and his crew were dead men, but he intended to take the crew of the P.A.G.A.N. ship with them.

"Sir," Logan said. "weapons, and slipstream are offline, and auxiliary engines are failing. …Correction all maneuverability is gone. We're adrift in space."

" Wrong Logan." Vash said. "We're dead in space."

"What happened!?" Logan asked. "We were winning. Something must have went wrong with Harper's virus."

"I don't think so Logan." Vash replied, as he remembered his last conversation with Harper.

_"… It's been good talking with you Harper." Vash said. "Thank you again for the message. I do hope that you have a long life and that, for your benefit, we never meet again." _

"Don't worry." Harper said. "I don't think there'll ever be a chance of that happening." 

"I think the virus is working exactly the way Harper planned it to."

Aboard the station, Fletcher sat in his command chair awaiting the inevitable.

_**"REACTOR GOING CRITICAL IN SIX SECONDS" **_

"FIVE"

"FOUR"

"THREE"

"TWO…" 

Seconds later on the command deck, Andromeda's crew watched as the P.A.G.A.N. ship and Fletcher's station destroyed each other.


End file.
